Execute
by VelvetSoulPanda
Summary: "Superman is giving me one of his capes! His SUPER-CAPES! AAAAAAHH! BEST. GIFT. EVER!" Barbara wasn't thrilled. What present could she possibly give for the boy who has everything? [Their relationship was anything but bland: submissions for DickxBabs "Dibs" week on tumblr]
1. Beginnings

_A/n: I should be attending to another story in another fandom that I haven't updated in months, thanks to a major laptop crash. But I can't ignore a week of prompts for my DC universe OTP._

_Prompts are from "Execute: DickxBabs Week" at young justice headcanons on tumblr.  
_

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Day One - Beginnings

_**"Beginnings are always messy." - John Galsworthy**_

* * *

She was dead. If there was one thing at that very moment she was certain of, it was imminent demise.

Not that Barbara was in any immediate danger. No, far from it. The young teen was in the darkness of her bedroom, hiding from the peril brewing out in the streets of Gotham as the police force dealt with the after-shock of Joker's latest rampage. Joker had, once again, broken out of Arkham, this time bringing along that creep Scarecrow with him. She admitted that the sudden team-up was a bit of a surprise to her, but everything else...honestly, she wondered if the residents of Gotham were genuinely surprised every time Joker broke out of they just pretended to be so the rest of the world wouldn't deem them insane to adapting to his criminal escapades.

In the back of her mind, she mentally chuckled at the thought. Gotham _had_ to be at least a little crazy to be so..._calm_ at first notices of Joker's escapes. If only a little.

A moan of pain brought the girl back to reality. She hurriedly fished through the contents of the medicine cabinet in the bathroom, loading any and all first aid equipment she could get her hand on and tossing them into a basket that usually contained her shower supplies. Slamming the glass door shut with no regards for the mirror, she caught a glimpse of her reflection and gasped in shock. Her porcelain skin was covered in a grimy film of sweat and soot. The black mask she wore over her eyes and head was torn at many places, and there was a spot high above her temple soaked through with blood that left a thick trail that ran down the side of her face and down her jawline. He bloody nose dried and her lower lip was busted. Her brilliant red hair-she could swear she'd put it in a ponytail before-was soaked from rain and stuck out at odd ends.

All that was just from the trip-up that had her caught by one of Scarecrow's beefier goons. The man had the misconception that her poor imitation of the bat-cowl could, like Batman, make her fly. For the entirety of the five seconds she was airborne, plummeting from one rooftop to the next, she wished her cheap knock-off imitation was the real thing. That would've saved her a concussion.

Shaking off her appearance and pains, the girl raced back down the hallway of her apartment and stumbled back into her room. Her own injuries weren't her first priority. Robin was.

The boy wonder lay drifting between a state of consciousness and unconsciousness, soaked to the bone much like she was from the downpour, injured and broken much like herself as well. He, however, was much worse for wear. His vigilante uniform, for all it's protective measures (the Kevlar cloth, the sectioned plating) was torn or damaged. His good arm hugged his torso where she had a pretty good inkling that he's broken or bruised a rib while his broken wrist lay gingerly on his stomach. He had a nasty scrape that extended from his right kneecap down his shin, and the same right ankle was swollen. That, of course, was without mentioning the dozens of cuts and bruises that littered the boy's body, and the blood, sweat, and rainwater soaking into the bedspread her father was so picky of maintaining clean.

The boy wonder lay injured, on her bed, while her father was on call, relying on none other than her to help him survive the night. If her father didn't kill her for this, the Batman certainly would. It was only a matter of time before he found his prodigy sidekick, and he'd have the girl's head for this.

Barbara got to work quickly. She addressed all of Robin's more serious wounds first, quelling bleeds that hadn't stopped and wrapping them in secure layers of gauze. She created a makeshift cast for his wrist, doing her best to not aggravate the injury, and propped his hand to the side on a pillow. When she finally caught wind that Robin was shivering due to it being cold and him soaking wet (_Duh, Barbara!_) she ran to grab her towel and pat him dry to the best of her ability. When she went to dry his inky black hair, she jumped in surprise when his hand flew up and caught her wrist.

"Don't..." He mumbled, his voice strained and breathy. He attempted to move (she imagined he had the intention of getting up and leaving) but the slight twist of his form had him biting back a grimace of pain, swallowing a yelp.

Barbara frowned in sympathy, pushing down on his shoulder lightly. "Stay put, everything's fine. You're safe."

But Robin was stubborn. He frowned in disagreement. "No, Crow...fear gas...and Joker..."

"Batman's handling Joker, and Scarecrow's been taken care of." She assured him. "Now sit quiet and let me help you." She rubbed the boy's hair dry gently, unsure if he, like her, also was suffering from any head trauma. She was surprised to find him smirking when she looked down.

"Always so bossy..." Barbara's auburn eyebrows furrowed in confusion, but she didn't get the chance to ask anything. "Where...?"

"We're at the bat-cave." She fibbed. Poorly. Her bedroom was a far cry from any bat cave. If a bat cave even existed. The media came up with a lot of tall tales and speculations for their nighttime vigilante. The bat cave was a ridiculous one, in her honest opinion, but secretly she also thought could be the coolest were it real.

Hopefully, Robin was too zoned out to make out the difference between her chandelier and a stalagmite.

The young hero on her bed laughed, a strange mix between a giggle and a cackle. "Right...and I...Disney world."

Barbara wasn't sure where the kid was going with that, but she was pretty sure that he was mocking her answer. Her cover was blown.

The fair-skinned girl went to wipe the grime off the hero's face when his slack hand tightened on her wrist again and she suddenly realized his fear. "I'm not going to unmask you." She swore in a soft tone, seeing uncertainty in his expression. "I promise."

A crackled of lightning with a boom of thunder lit up her dark room for a split second, casting a tall, dark shadow down the dark wood floors and over her bed. The redheaded girl lost her voice when she realized who the figure at her window was.

"Step away from him."

Barbara dropped the towel like it burned her hand and pulled away from Robin with speed that would probably impress the Flash. She held her breath, paralyzed in place. In two long strides the Batman went from her window to the bedside, kneeling down next to Robin and assessing his injuries. The man asked his partner a few simple yes or no questions, testing his consciousness as well as his response time. Then, without a word, the man took the towel the girl was using and finished wiping Robin's face, cleaning up what she hadn't. He finished quickly, then turned to her.

Barbara was so nervous and anxious she felt dizzy.

Batman towered over her small and lithe frame, his eyes behind the cowl analytical of her. He was glaring at her, more than likely angry.

In truth, the Dark Knight was reading her. Before him stood Barbara Gordon, daughter of the police commissioner of Gotham, the only man on the force (hell, probably in all of Gotham) that he had trust in. She was dressed in a homemade costume that mimicked his own bat-suit. From what he could tell, it was composed of different outfits from the girl's gymnastics and ballet wardrobe, dyed blacks and grays. Poorly made, and definitely poorly thought-out for self-defense purposes. The only smart thing about her costume was the bulletproof vest she wore, no doubt stolen form her father. She was no better than Robin, cut and bruised and bloodied and injured, shaking terribly from being soaked through from the downpour. She looked small and scared beyond belief.

Perhaps she was a little of both, but deep in her blue-green eyes burned something stronger. Her strong will and courage were very much present, and Batman attributed her stubborn, fighting nature to be the reason why she was still standing. Heck, he wasn't going to thank her just yet-not until she understood the gravity of her actions-but it was thanks to her that Robin was still alive.

Oh, if only Barbara knew that she hadn't just saved Gotham's adored boy wonder, but her best friend Dick Grayson as well...she'd have her field day soon enough.

Batman may have been preoccupied fighting Joker, for he didn't want the clown anywhere near his protege, but he saw Barbara's heroics. She was naturally talented, like Dick, and clever. She knew what she could and couldn't handle, and she would adjust and adapt so that the fight was in her favor. She took out Scarecrow in a fistfight, using his own gas against him. She not only saved Robin from a criminal, she cleared him from a falling building as well.

Bruce remembered having conversations with Dick (more like Dick babbling at him non-stop about his day) where his young ward mentioned Barbara's...unique choice of hobbies. Her desire to solve cases old and new of the Gotham Police department, for example. He never questioned how she got her hands on the actual cases, but he suspected that had to do with her other new-found talent of theft...and hacking...

Barbara was a lot like Dick. The question was,

"Why did you do it?"

"Because you're just like my father." The young teen dressed like a bat choked on air but hid it well. With a deep, shaky breath, she replied with steady eyes full of determination. "You have the responsibility to take care of everyone, but who's going to take care of you?"

"Commissioner Gordon has us."

"And what about you and Robin?"

"We have each other." And Alfred and Lucius, and if things got bad the League, but it wasn't necessary to tell her that.

"And what about when you don't, and your backups aren't there for you?" She retorted, her green-blue eyes glowing with her glare. "I know that this city is cold and corrupted. If my father ever died on the field, they'd mourn for the press and move on like the transition between daily meals. They can't even _begin_ to appreciate or understand what it's like seeing your only family drop you off at school in the morning and not know if you'll see him again at dinnertime. I was out there and saved Robin because I have people to protect and broken promises to fulfill. I...I want to do what you do."

"Absolutely not."

"Why not?! I fought side by side with Robin, I took down Scarecrow!"

"Dumb luck and dumb thinking on your part, my answer's still no." Batman retorted, and the girl seethed a sigh of frustration, her eyes wandering to the unconscious boy on her bed. She bit her bloody lip.

"...I didn't want to have to do this..." She whispered quietly to herself, "...What gives Robin the right?"

Batman narrowed his eyes, gathering his son in his arms to leave. He didn't answer Barbara, he'd already said more than enough.

"Bruce," She whispered, seeing how the Dark Knight stiffened in place. _Now_ she was in for it. "I didn't...I never unmasked him, so don't yell at Rob-er, Dick. You were kind of a dead giveaway. You guys...you-." She was surprised when Batman tossed a grapple gun at her, catching it with ease, and frowned in confusion.

"I presume you know how to use one of those," The man said without looking back from the window, "Keep up."

DxB DxB DxB DxB

The first thing Dick heard when he came to were the squeaks and flapping wings of bats. He felt groggy and pained all over, but he was thankful that he was back home. Not too far off he heard the murmurs of Alfred and Bruce's conversation. He didn't bother trying to make out the conversation. He imagined it was probably Alfred chewing out Bruce for their rather messy work tonight. Poor Bruce...not every patrol night was perfect.

What he didn't expect to hear was a very feminine sneeze.

Startled, Dick sat up all too quickly and hissed in pain, hugging his torso, causing the girl that sat sleeping in a chair by his side to also jump up. They stared at each other in shock. Dick looked very much like a fish out of water, his jaw snapping shut and falling slack as his ever-eclectic vocabulary failed him. Here sat his best friend, Barbara Gordon, with him in the Bat-cave.

She smacked him clean across the face.

"Don't you _ever_ scare me like that again!"

"OW." He stated, rubbing his injured cheek. "What are you _doing_ here?" He then realized, as he rubbed his cheek, that his mask wasn't on his face. Panic washed over him, and his redheaded friend saw it.

"Relax, Dick, I know everything." She reassured him. His eyes widened, if possible even further. She explained some of her story, stopping only when Bruce, still in Batman attire with the cowl down, and Alfred joined them. Bruce was curt and foreword with both teens. Alfred would prepare a guest room for Barbara, and the two were to to get a good night's sleep. In the morning, Barbara would get her final verdict.

Dick, however, knew his adoptive father well, and didn't even bother hiding his enthusiastic smile. Bruce wasn't going to turn down Barbara. The girl was officially a part of the bat-family.

The two adults left, leaving the best friends in each others company. Dick, despite Barbara's protests, hopped off the medical bed and sat with her, leaning against her shoulder and propping his cast wrist on her lap. "So Babs, you think of a name for yourself yet?"

"Uhm, I _had_ one. but I doubt I'll need it anymore. I saw the playback of my fighting footage...it was atrocious." The redheaded girl yawned, giving him a look of doubt. "But it was Batgirl."

"Beginnings are always messy. I'm sure it wasn't that bad." Dick laughed around a yawn, "Hey, thanks. For saving my butt out there..._Batgirl_." He grinned up, but found that the girl was fast asleep. The young hero took her hand in his good one, giving it a squeeze of gratification, and snoozed with her until Alfred came calling.

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_A/n: Reviews greatly appreciated. Other one shots/prompts/ideas welcome._


	2. At the Gala

A/n: I'm a day behind with this...what else is new .

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Day Two - At the Gala

_**"A witty woman is a treasure; a witty beauty is a power."- George Meredith**_

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Dick Grayson hated high-society parties.

It was all too cookie cutter, too fake. Oh sure, the locations are usually tasteful and the lavish decorations the epitome of perfection. The food was prepared by "the finest chefs," which was wealthy talk for "I hired a gourmet cook more expensive than the one you hired for your party." The music was typically classical, and always live performance. In all honesty, these parties were exactly like the kind you'd see in movies or magazines, and that's exactly why they failed to entice him.

Dick would take a haphazardly put together party with takeout at the cave over a party with a hefty price tag any day.

"Ah, if it isn't young Richard," Dick inwardly groaned at the snooty voice behind him. No doubt it had to be someone that was a suck-up to Bruce. For some reason, these socialite parasites had the idea that if they buttered up to him, they could try and mooch off his adoptive father with more success.

Dick hated these parties because he hated how absolutely fake everyone was. These people had one-track minds: self-interest. They wanted more money. They wanted power. They wanted beauty, and fame, and everything they didn't deserve but earned anyway because the world was just that unfair. The young acrobat found himself wondering why and how Bruce managed to put up with these people every time he had to attend a gala with him.

But the young teen turned around beaming a smile that complemented his galaxy-blue eyes wonderfully, making bland conversation with the party goers and entertaining them in their favorite subjects. After a while he excused himself to find his father, when in truth he ran for the buffet table and ducked behind the punch bowl.

"Wow," The familiar voice came from behind him, her voice humored. "That had the be the biggest shit-eating face I've ever seen you give one of these people. Impressive." She laughed.

"Well, y'know what they say Babs, practice makes perfect." He replied with a laugh of his own, pouring a second cup of punch and handing it to his best friend with a theatrical spin on his heel. "For milady."

"Why, thank you, kind sir." She grinned. The young teen was dressed in a floor-length, sleeveless gold dress that had red-lace overlay, and her brilliant red hair was pulled up into a bun on the back of her head that looked like the tie of a kimono ribbon. Compared to every other woman in the room, she had no makeup on at all, just pinched-blush cheeks, glossy lips, and cat-eye eyes. Still, to Dick, she wiped the floor with every single one of them.

"What brings you to the highlands of Gotham society? Run out of CIA files to hack into?" He grinned behind his glass, his eyes skimming over the crowd until he spotted his father-figure. The man was talking with some potential business partners and clearly struggling to keep some money-seeking bimbos off his neck. At least these two women had the decency of wearing more modest clothing. Whenever he remembered the..._deep_...neckline of the last woman that hit on Bruce at the last party he accompanied him to, he almost snorted a laugh.

"Dad was "cordially invited" to attend. Something about the folks here wanted to personally thank him for his latest services to Gotham. They gave him a plus one." She shrugged, looking at her friend from head to toe. She had to admit that despite being a tiny fourteen year old, Dick filled out a dress suit well, always had. Or maybe that was just her hormones talking; a man in a suit was always attractive. Regardless, he looked good. His hair was slicked back and parted differently from how he wore it to school. It was a style somewhere between his school and superhero look. And Alfred always knew what color tie or shirt to make Dick wear, it always brought out his eyes.

The acrobat turned to her, a twinkle in his eye, smirking, and Barbara caught herself staring. She realized that she was checking him out and flushed. When did she start doing that?

"Anyhow," She cleared her throat, a poor attempt to ignore what she was just doing, "I figured that you'd be here, bored out of your mind like you usually say you are. So I came."

Dick genuinely smiled at her, her charade at being aloof around him cute. The redhead was always trying to one-up him, competitive in nature much like himself, and he loved that about her. It made for poking fun at her all the more entertaining. "Thanks, Barb."

"Sure thing." She nodded, again pretending like she wasn't listening, her eyes glazing over the crowd of people in the room and looking up at the grand chandelier that was the centerpiece of the ballroom. After a beat, she huffed a sigh. "You were right, Dick, these parties are _God-awful_." She downed the rest of her punch, turning to him. "How do you stand-Dick?" She raised a curious auburn eyebrow, following his gaze to the chandelier. "Is there-?"

"Bee," He gasped all of a sudden, taking her hands and pulling her so close his cologne wafted to her nose and mingled with her own perfume. He smelled good. "I have an idea." He grinned. While she was blushing at the sudden proximity (he as well, when he realized how much he'd invaded her personal bubble) she knew that grin meant trouble.

"And that idea is...?"

* * *

"I must admit that this has to be possibly the most _creative_ solution you've had for boredom yet."

"I know, isn't it great?"

"We are so dead when this party if over."

Dick gave his signature cackle, "Only if we get caught. Relax, Barb, what's the worse that could happen?"

Barbara shot her best friend a deadpanned 'are-you-serious' look. Right at that very moment the pair sat inside the grand chandelier of the ballroom, hoarding trays of hors-d'œuvres on the steel framing that held the chandelier to the ceiling between them, a pitcher of punch with two conchs precariously sitting on the glass of the light fixture. They were concealed because the chandelier was shut off to create mood lighting for the dancing that took place below.

"Well, for starters, if the pitcher tips, it'll spill on all this electric wiring and we'll be fried, literally. We're sitting a good one-hundred-fifty feet above the ground, so God forbid this fixture's shaky and we fall. When they turn the light back on we'll be blinded and seen-."

"Babs, it was a rhetorical question." Dick snickered, scooping up a conch full of punch. "Hey, watch this!" He motioned for the girl to sit closer, peering over the edge of the chandelier to the dancers below. The view from above was pretty spectacular. With careful precision, Dick tipped a small stream of punch to fall on a dancing couple's head. He pulled her back quickly, hugging the girl so she would lose balance, and snickered deviously.

"What are you doing?!"

"Having a little fun! C'mon Babs, you know you want to try it!" He teasingly swung the spoon in front of her, goading her on. They glanced over the edge again, seeing that the couple looked a little confused, but brushed it off. "Hey look, isn't that the reporter that bad-mouthed your dad?"

Barbara didn't think twice. "We're only dead if we're caught, right?" She reiterated, a wicked smile on her face. Dick nodded, mirroring her smile.

"Which we won't be. We're Robin and Batgirl; stealth is our middle names."

Barbara picked up the pitcher and brought it to sit on her lap, getting as close as possible to the edge of the chandelier. However, seeing as he was sitting right next to it and it was difficult to switch spots unless they climbed back up the vent they used to reach it, the acrobat came up with a different solution. Circling his arms around her waist, the boy picked her up and sat his friend on his lap, hugging her closely so she wouldn't fall.

"Better?"

"Much. Now where'd that reporter go?"

"There."

The boy wonder was glad his partner in crime couldn't see his face; he was certain he was blushing up to his ears. As he sat there, the tip of his nose brushing against her soft-scented bare back, the dim lights of the party below making her face radiate, a kind of epiphany came to him. He admitted that Barbara was glowing. No other girl with such a vivacious spirit as hers, whose interests they shared and competed, could make him feel so elated and simultaneously flustered. She was was charming, poised and witty. Tough and stubborn, caring...

He hated to admit it, but maybe...just maybe...Wally's teasing may not be so wrong. Or, for that matter, his school friend's and the team back at the cave. Maybe Alfred had a point, that Dick shared a common flaw with Bruce: that they couldn't grasp the great thing that stood right in front of them. Or maybe he could, he he subconsciously was too scared to try.

One thing was certain, though. Dick liked Barbara.

The redhead cackled suddenly, her glowing green-blue eyes following her latest victim as he sped out off the dance floor. He felt his heart somersault at her mischievous side she rarely showed.

Dick liked Barbara a lot.

"Hey Pixie Boots, quit staring and get to work." The girl giggled, handing him the other conch. "There's a leak in the ceiling."

The boy shook away all previous thoughts from his head, smirking at his friend. "Babs, has anyone ever told you you're _so hot_ when you're evil."

The girl rolled her eyes, elbowing him, "Can it, Romeo. Pass me one of those quiche-thingies while you're at it."

"So bossy." The young hero grumbled in half-hearted complaint, but did so anyway. He handed the girl her snack, but saw that she could exactly grab it while holding the pitcher. She opened her mouth, a silent sign for him to pop the snack in there for her, and he found his blush returning. It didn't help that when he did, her lips kissed his fingers. He cleared his throat, ignoring the peculiar look she gave him and trying to find his next target. "That guy looks like he'd be-."

"Hey Dick."

"Yeah Ba-."

She kissed him.

It was short and sweet and completely caught him off guard, effectively making his face mimic a tomato. His lips burned where hers pressed against it, feeling all too cold when they left. His galaxy blue eyes were wide in surprise.

"This party would've sucked if you weren't here. So...thanks." She smiled, shrugging as she turned her attention back to the crowd. "And Merry Christmas, too; I never know what to get you since you have everything so...yeeeeah."

The acrobat found himself grinning like an idiot, and he unconsciously hugged her closer. "I get a kiss?" _Smooth question, boy wonder_.

"Don't think too much into it." She retorted, back to typical Babs. What he couldn't see was that she was blushing too.

"...Do I get another one?"

"Don't push your luck either."

A beat.

"What if I get mistletoe?"

"My fist will kiss your face."

"Ou-ch. Not asterous, Bee; where'd your gentle side run off too?"

"Ugh, _don't_ start with the wordplay."

* * *

Elsewhere in the grand ballroom, Bruce had finally stolen a moment to himself and was getting a glass of wine when he stumbled into the Commissioner. They spoke briefly, wishing each other happy holidays, and the man asked if the billionaire had per chance seen his daughter. Bruce shrugged, saying he was unsure, but that he supposed that she were with Richard since his ward had also vanished for the past couple of hours. He promised that if he found them to tell the girl to see her father, and the men parted ways. As the white knight of Gotham walked around the party, a couple passed him, complaining about a leak in the ceiling. His brow narrowed in suspicion; he'd heard other complaining about the same leak. Looking up, his eyes scanned the ceiling for any signs of a water problem.

He didn't spot anything on the _ceiling_, but he _did_ make out the silhouette of two shadows in the chandelier. He observed for a moment and heard a cry of complaint from a woman dancing. Something about her dress being ruined from water.

Dick and Barbara were getting quite the lecture from him tomorrow when they trained.

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A/n: ...I can't wait until the YJ hiatus is over. Only a few more weeks!

Review please :)


	3. Loss

A/n: I went to the midnight premiere of the Hobbit. It was glorious. If I had ever blinked once during the movie, I would've wept tears of joy.

Because I can't get the movie out of my head, I've been listening to the LOTR soundtrack on repeat ever since. This submission brought to you by the track "Gandalf Falls" Originally I was going to post something silly, but then this happened...I regret nothing.

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Three - Loss

_**"Every human being must find his own way to cope with severe loss, and the only job of a true friend is to facilitate whatever method he chooses." - Caleb Carr**_

* * *

**For him...**

There weren't very many faces that stood out to Dick on the tragic night of his parents death. Everything was a blur of pain and anguish. He remembered Pop Haly, of course, and Bruce Wayne: the last person on earth he imagined helping him once he knew who he was.

It went without saying that he remembered his family. Falling, breaking, lifeless.

The others were all passing faces, made indistinguishable thanks to the tears that blurred his vision. Now, a few years passed, when he could manage to reflect on that night during the anniversary of their deaths without having a complete breakdown, Dick wished that he could remember some. There were a few people he wished to thank.

He admitted this to his best friend Barbara Gordon before their graves, just as they were about to take their leave. Bruce was out of town on business meeting-he'd called the boy and apologized for not being there-and Dick didn't want to go alone. Dick always preferred company over solitude, even when it came to personal situations.

He told her of how there was someone at the tent-not Bruce or a cop, nor a circus family member- that sat with him. The person cleaned the blood of his parents off his hands and the birthday gift he'd given his mother prior to the show: a gold bracelet with kissing robins on it. He'd been given the person's winter coat-he didn't remember being cold-and hugged. He couldn't recall if the person ever said anything to him, but he felt such comfort and compassion from him that he sobbed until his tears ran dry and he was taken to GCPD.

He told Barbara that it still hurt (hell, he _still_ ached over the loss of his parents) but that...the hug helped. It was a small gesture, and he doubted that whomever it was even remembered it, but he wished he could thank him for it.

Barbara schooled herself to remain as neutral as possible. Talking about his parents was rare and dangerous grounds to tread, and the girl always preferred to give him his space for it. He deserved it, after all. But she couldn't help but feel her heart contract in a strange feeling of pity and relief. She never told him, but the night of that performance she was there with her mother and younger brother, watching the breathtaking Flying Graysons, shocked silent at their death, and completely devastated for the poor orphaned child. Her mother had dragged her and James Jr. outside, giving her report to one of the officers on the scene and searching for her father. Barbara was supposed to do the same, but she couldn't. Not when the young acrobat stood alone by the entrance to the big top, shaking and crying and barely keeping himself from falling apart.

She didn't know what she was doing, but she couldn't leave him alone when he needed someone most.

So Barbara walked the boy inside. Sat him on the stands and gave him her bulky winter coat that she felt too hot in. She used her long, flowy skirt to dry the tears on his face and wipe the blood off his hands and the piece of jewelry he held onto like a lifeline. And when she didn't know how else to reach him, she settle for giving him a quick hug, hoping that she'd helped in some form. She ended up sitting with him for two hours, letting him cry to exhaustion, until her father found them and took the boy to the police department where he'd meet up with child services.

A small, soft smile curled the corners of her warm pink lips, and she took Dick's hand, giving it a tight squeeze. "I'm sure they know."

* * *

**For her...**

Barbara had been absent from school all week.

Needless to say, Dick was concerned for for. The girl was his best friend, the very first person who reached out to him when he was adopted by Bruce, and the first friend of his age he'd made in a while. She wasn't responding to phone calls or text messages.

He knew the reason why. It was all over the news. The wife of Gotham Police Commissioner Gordon, Barbara Gordon, was missing. The Commissioner, obviously, didn't go into detail about it. Dick pleaded to Bruce that Robin and Batman take a look at the case, but Bruce was quick to shut his idea down. Dick was beyond angry that Bruce wouldn't take the case and wouldn't give him a reason why. The man simply stated that this was a family issue he believe the commissioner would rather resolve on his own and to not get involved in any way. He also ordered Dick to give Barbara her space.

Obviously, Dick was not happy. He refused to talk to Bruce after that heated discussion over dinner three nights ago, childishly giving him the silent treatment. Unfortunately, Dick forgot that Bruce was a master of the silent treatment and rather enjoyed silence, so he wasn't being very effective in his protest.

So he found a reason to go see Barbara instead. Through indirect suggestions and subtle hints, his teachers requested that Dick do them a favor of delivering the week's classwork to Barbara. Of course the boy said yes, and as soon as 2:15pm hit her sprinted to the limo where Alfred was waiting and asked the butler to make a beeline for the apartment complex Barbara lived at.

Alfred gave him one look: I don't think this is a good idea and Master Bruce will not be glad to hear of this.

Dick matched it: I have to give her homework to her, and if you don't take me I'll find another way to get there myself.

To the ebony-haired boy it felt like an eternity before they arrived, and he raced up the twenty flights of stairs to apartment 2020, where a pizza delivery boy was walking away counting cash. He knocked on the door, receiving no answer, and continued knocking. When silence was still what he got, he sighed.

"Babs, I know you're in there. I saw the pizza guy leaving." He called. "It smells really good."

Finally he got a muffled, "Go away, Dick."

"C'mon, Babs, let me in. You haven't answered any of my calls all week, I want to talk to you."

"I don't want to talk."

He sighed again, running his hand through his gelled hair. "Babs, please? I brought the schoolwork you missed...I could tutor you and catch you up on the material." He offered in weak attempt. He got no answer, picking up his phone to see who was calling. It was Alfred.

_"Master Dick, I don't mean to rush you but I'm a bit pressed for time and I have a number of errands to finish before the end of the day. Will you be coming down or should I come pick you up at a later time?"_

"No, Alfred, I'm-." He said defeated, stopping when he heard the clicks of the door unlocking. "Actually Alfred, would you mind picking me up later?"

_"Of course not, Master Dick. I'll be back to collect you in two hours."_

"Thanks," He hung up, stepping inside and shutting the door behind him. He spotted the redhead sitting in front of the TV on the couch, her hair pulled into a messy ponytail, staring at teh open pizza box in front of her. Dropping his backpack on the floor, he slowly approached her, not knowing what to expect. He'd always known and seen Barbara as a strong fighter with a go-get-'em attitude. Even when her little brother was taken to the mental institute she wasn't so shaken up.

Or perhaps she just hid it better then.

He hesitantly took a seat beside her, his heart tearing at how miserable she looked, the tears welled in her eyes and that made her cheeks slick. He reached out, taking her hand in his. "Barb...don't worry. I'm sure they'll find your mother soon. The entire police force is on the case."

"She's not...gone, Dick. She's just _gone_." The girl whispered, confusing the boy. His galaxy-blue eyes squinted in question. "My father puts his life on the line every day. My little brother is mentally unstable and in a straight jacket. And now my mother walks out on us." Dick listened quietly, unsure of what to say or do. Quite honestly, he'd never dealt with a situation like this before. "They've been fighting for a-awhile now. I should've done something to make them stop. Maybe, maybe if I had, a-and Jamie might've-."

"Barbara," he cut her off sternly, leaning down to he could look up at her eyes. "I don't know what was going on with...anything. But I do know that you cannot blame yourself. None of this was your fault."

Her eyes brimmed with tears, "But...she _left_ us, Dick. Dad and I, we needed her. We all needed each other, an she-."

"I don't know why she left," He frowned at the girl, "But I know that it's not fair." That was all it took for the girl to snap. She fell on Dick's shoulder, crying quietly into the lapel of his school blazer, and Dick hugged her with all his strength. He couldn't understand her pain, but he knew pain well enough. All she needed to know right now was that she wasn't alone.

* * *

**For him...**

Truthfully, Barbara never really adjusted to the Dick's identity change from Robin to Nightwing. She had no problem accepting that Jason Todd, the acrobat's younger brother by adoption, was Robin the second. She welcomed it whole-heartedly, much like Dick had, Alfred and Bruce, and the members of the team. Hell, she and Dick even created a horrible running joke derived from _Star Wars_: R2-B2. For the second bird and bat of the Bat-cave. It was difficult to explain why she couldn't stop picturing Dick as Robin after retiring from the name for so long. It was probably because of all the history it held with him, with her, with them.

Regardless, she still felt like she was shot with a bullet when she heard the news. Robin the second, Jason Todd, was killed in action. By non other than the Joker, no less. It hit everyone hard, in varying degrees.

For the team, it was the first loss of a member. While they weren't present when it happened-Robin had been patrolling Gotham that night, not on a mission with the team-they were still devastated. It was one thing to know that in the line of duty as a hero, you could die at any moment. It was another thing entirely to have that cold fact thrown in your face and hitting so close to home.

The League felt the loss too. While they'd seen the death of some of their members in the past, this was the first time that an apprentice to any League member passed, and she could see that it was weighing down on them as well.

Personally, she felt devastated. The Wayne family became like her family. They were broken, yes, but then again so was her real family. They connected on various levels, and the heroes that fight together stick together no matter what. Jason filled the hole that her estranged little brother left, becoming a little brother to her in his own way. That hole was torn open again, and it hurt more than ever.

Alfred was in despair, like she was. She had yet to see her mentor; she couldn't begin to imagine how he was. As for Dick...

She heard her name being announced by the Zeta-tubes as she walked into the cave, finding the team gathered in the living room, quiet, each mourning in their own way. She was just at the Bat-cave with Alfred, butler and bat comforting each other, looking for either one of her partners in crime but finding none. She decided to seek Dick first, and the cave was the first place on the list.

"Batgirl," Wally spoke up as she walked in, causing the others to look her way. His wrist snapped in a feeble wave, and he said nothing more.

"Hey." She greeted, coaching her voice to stay firm even when quiet. She glanced around the room. Superboy, Miss Martian and Beast Boy; Aqualad and Aquagirl; Artemis and Kid Flash; Zatanna, Rocket, and Bumblebee. Everyone but who she seeking. "Have any of you seen Nightwing?" The group of heroes looked perplexed, and Wally voiced it.

"We didn't think he was here. He's not in his room." The speedster said. Batgirl nodded slowly. She had an idea of where he might be. Wordlessly, she left the group, exiting the cave at the exit that led to the beach. Lo and behold, the hero clad in black Kevlar sat on a boulder in the pouring rain, staring out at the turbulent ocean. She hopped up to sit beside him, saying nothing. He was rigid.

"He needed me, Barb. He needed my help and I wasn't there." There were so many ways the green-blue eyed girl could scold him otherwise, but arguing with Dick was pointless and he didn't need it right now. "He tricked us all. Me, Bruce...he wanted Jason alone. He did worse to Jason than what he did to me."

Dick was unresponsive to her proximity, which hurt her a little somewhere deep inside. Ever since the acrobat stepped out of his guardian's shadow, he'd been less and less "physically emotional." The hugs, the noogies, hooking arms and holding hands, they were becoming scarce. Barbara remembered how she used to hate it. She was never a touchy-feel person. Now she missed it. Terribly.

"I'll make him pay, Barb." The teen promised. Barbara could somehow tell the difference between the rainwater that ran down his face and tears. "Joker's going to regret ever laying a finger on him. I'm going to give him the beating of a lifetime."

She draped her cape over his shoulder to shield him from the rain, huddling close to him. Hooking her arm with his, she took off his glove and hers, lacing their fingers together and holding tight, hoping the heat of her hand was enough to show him that she was there, she was hurting like him, and she understood now the pain of losing family to death. She was there for him.

* * *

**For her...**

Nightwing traveled from Blüdhaven to Gotham in record time. He could've been mistaken for truly flying; his acrobatics made him soar through the air and his running speed only added to propulsion. He only had one thought in mind, and one destination.

Gotham City General Hospital.

Once the building came into view, he dropped down into an alley and hastily pulled on his civvies over his hero suit. He came barging through the front doors of the hospital, nearly crashing in the front desk, and waving impatiently at the computer the nurse sat in front of.

"Barbara...Gordon..." He panted to a much-in-shock nurse. She nodded slowly, wide-eyed, and typed in the patient's name.

"And you are, sir?"

"Richard...Grayson...Wayne."

"_Right_," The woman nodded, getting a result. "Your father was here earlier with your brother's, if I recall correctly."

"Lady, I don't mean to be rude," Dick cut her off, finally standing up properly after having caught his breath, "But _what room_?"

"Fourth floor, wing C, room C-54. I'm sorry to say you'll have to wait until tomorrow, visiting hours are-excuse me! Mr. Grayson, you can't go up there!" She yelled after the young man that was long down, sprinting down the hall. "Security!"

Dick could care less if the nurse sent the dogs after him, he had to see Barbara. That menace...that vile villain they somehow called a human being, the Joker...he nearly killed her tonight. Killing Jason, torturing him and Tim, none of that was enough for the clown. He was after every ally of the Batman, trying to scare them or damage them into submission. But that wasn't it. Joker hadn't gone after Batgirl. He'd gone after _Barbara Gordon_.

Currently, he didn't know what was more frightening: the fact that Joker had unveiled their civilian identities, or the fact that he came _so close_ to losing someone he cared about so much tonight.

And he was out of her reach. Just like with Tim, and Jason, and his parents.

The raven-haired man shook these thoughts out of his head as he reached the silent hallway of Barbara's hospital room. He found her room just as her father was walking out. The Commissioner looked terrible, and it was no wonder why.

"Grayson? The hell are you doing here, it's one in the morning." The man said, more stunned than angry. Dick skidded to a stop, giving the cop his foolproof pleading look.

"Mr. Gordon, I came to see Barbara."

"Christ, kid, did you just come all the way from Blüdhaven?" The man asked, admittedly a little impressed, and looked up at the commotion a few security guards that were tailing Dick were causing now that they'd caught up.

"There he is! Sorry kid, but you can't be here right now. You wanna visit, you come back in the morning and wait for visitor's hours to start." One of the guards said, taking his wrists and turning his arms back to keep him from running off. Dick struggled against the cop's hold, but the other helped.

"We're sorry about this, Commissioner, we'll have him taken out." The other apologized.

"No, no, listen, please, you gotta let me see her! I have to see she's OK, I need to see Babs!" The teen cried out, his galaxy blue eyes desperate and pleading. "Mr. Gordon, please, you gotta let me in. I'm not leaving this hospital until I see her."

The startled police commissioner eventually snapped out of his stupor, motioning to the guards to release him. "No fellas, it's alright. This one's...practically family." He explained. "Do me a favor and stand guard at her door. I need to speak with her physicians and I'm needed for interrogation back at the station...for how I found her." The cop sounded like he wanted to laugh at the irony of the bad joke, but he didn't.

"Dick," He spoke, catching the acrobat off guard. "Stay with her until I'm back?"

"With all due respect, Mr. Gordon, I wasn't planning on leaving her side anytime soon." The two nodded and parted ways, and Dick stepped into the quiet room, shutting the door behind him.

The room was dark: curtains pulled, television off, and only the lamp by the bed providing a warm yellow glow. As he approached the bed, more became apparent. It was clear that beneath the sheets there was braces and casts around his friend's torso. An IV drip for fluids, blood supply, and heart monitor was attached to the girl. Her hair, a brilliant and fiery sunset red, was dark and resembled blood because of how pale she was.

The worst part of all was that even in her drug-induced sleep, she was crying.

It took all of his self control to not curl up beside her on the bed and hug her tight, to wish this was all a bad dream and make it go away. So instead, he pulled up a chair and sat by her bedside and held onto her hand as if it were his lifeline, kissing it every so often. And until he unknowingly drifted to sleep, he watched her cry and listen to her anguish as she mumbled through her nightmare. It was the same phrase over and over.

"I can't feel them anymore..."

* * *

A/n: The Babs-centric scenes are based off the storyline where James Jr. is certified insane and her mom walks out on the family and when Joker shoots and paralyzes her from the waist down.

If you read, please review. It's motivating. Really ._.


	4. Snowstorm

A/n: I like to imagine that this one-shot takes place sometime in the very brief time span between Impulse's arrival and before Artemis' fake death plan went into action. Because...I can't...let go...of KF and Artemis..."retiring."

Spitfire crime-fighting is just too great for me to quit. Sue me.

Also, this was the hardest prompt for me to come up with something. Not too thrilled with the turn-out, but whatevs.

I've also been forgetting to disclaim...hehe, whoops.

**Disclaimer: _Young Justice_ and all its characters are properties of their own respective creators in the DC Universe. All other references to marketed products, games, songs, etc. also belong to their respective owners. I simply exercise my creativity as a writer here as fanfiction.**

**I promise not to destroy the integrity of your beloved characters...(...too much. wink.)**

* * *

Four - Snowstorm

_**"We have lost contact with reality, the simplicity of life."- Paulo Coelho**_

* * *

It had been a long while since the cave had thrown together a party. Sure, the members acknowledged each others' birthdays and were sure to at least bake a cake for the occasion (for Wally, several). Yet, with some of the events that had happened in the past two years...they'd been so busied and burdened with hero life and how to juggle the ever-growing troubles with civilian life that they'd cast aside their care-free pastimes.

Impulse wanted to change that.

Since he had quite an arsenal of spoilers given his origin, Bart wanted to do something nice for the team. Not just because he pretty much knew their life stories up until _his_ present, but because they deserved it. More-so than that, they accepted him with open arms, despite some (the Bat-brood, Wally, and a few others to name a few) having their suspicions. They never questioned his legitimacy. He was family, and that was that.

So he decided to throw a party.

The young speedster was slick-talking and persuasive in his argument, enough to convince _Artemis_ of the idea before _Wally_. He found it kind of humorous how the archer's approval sparked the red-headed speedster's irritation, and he somehow attributed Artemis' ever-growing enthusiasm to it. He also assumed it's why Wally grudgingly accepted the idea as well. But he could tell the former hero was warming up to it.

This was how, on a stormy day, when the worst possible snowstorm to date rendered the Zeta-tubes of the cave useless until they defrosted, the Young Justice team wound up having a pool party.

That's right, a pool party in the dead of winter. Like the preceding Flashes before him, Bart was a "go big or go home" type of guy.

Much like his KF and Arty (the couple _despised_ their nicknames), the team was unsure of the party at first. Now, however, they were having the most fun they'd had in a long time.

There was just one problem...

"Dude, where's Nightwing? I just had the greatest idea ever!" The novice speedster jumped with excitement, hanging off of Jaime's shoulder's as he peered in on the card game Blue, Robin, Mal, and Cassie were playing. "You should use that one, by the way."

Jaime shrugged, "_No sé, hermano._ Let me guess, another "crash" idea?"

Bart grinned even wider that his new best friend used his favorite word. "Even more than crash, dude. So crash, only Nightwing can appreciate how great it is!"

The boy wonder in civvies played his move. "He's probably still doing work. He had a lead on something last night; as far as I know he hasn't had a wink of sleep since. Bad habit he picked up from Batman."

Mal gave a deep hearty chuckle in agreement, shaking his head at Robin's play. "I'll say, the boy dries up our coffee supply as fast as Kid Mouth over there can clean out a fridge."

"I heard that!" The college student complained, nearly swatting the drink out of Artemis' hand in the process of waving them off. He sheepishly smiled at his girlfriend, pecked her on the cheek, and ran to get another.

Cassie frowned, "What kind of work can he be doing when half our computer systems are lagging from the snowstorm outside?"

"You'd be surprised, Cass. He's not on the computers; at least last I saw he wasn't. I think he was trying to get the Zeta-tubes up and running again."

Cassie snorted a pout, handing her cards to Bart. "And missing out on all the fun? Hang on, I'll go fix this."

The blonde girl soared over her friends in the pool area to the monitor womb. With the exception of Lagoon Boy and Beast Boy, nobody else had taken a splash yet. M'gann, Artemis, and visitor Zatanna were having their girl bonding; Rocket and Bumblebee were gossiping something or another, critiquing the team's swimwear choices and who looked best in their own opinions; Conner lay poolside with Wolf, snoozing, ignoring how Wally tried to probe Sphere to turn into "an epic water slide"; and the remaining boys were playing cards. Batgirl had yet to show. She probably, regrettably, wouldn't show now that the Zeta-tubes were offline.

In the monitor womb, she found Nightwing exactly where Mal said he was: trying to repair the Zeta platforms.

"Hey, Nightwing!" She piped in her ever-chipper tone, smiling enthusiastically. "We might be starting up a game of volleyball in the pool in a few! You wanna-?"

"Sorry Cass, can't. I'm a little busy right now." The acrobat retort without so much as looking back. "Maybe later."

The girl tried to stay positive. "Okaaay, but maybe you should take a break to eat! M'gann and Zatanna made-."

"I got plenty of caffeine in my system right now, I'll be fine for a while."

Her eyebrow twitched.

"Wally's trying to-."

"Tell him to throw this at the air vent shaft on the far left side of the room that run across the ceiling, close to one of the red emergency valves for the sprinklers." He tossed an eagle-shaped ninja star at her with a little bulk and a button in the center for detonation. "Turn the lowered pipe toward the pool, and if he wants an extra kick to fly farther out of the slide and into the pool to angle the last six sections of the pipe up 27 degrees. Connor might be able to help with with that." Cassie's jaw dropped. "I'd suggest not riding down on your back or stomach to avoid the risk of any nasty cuts."

The girl pouted in frustration. "Nightwing." She whined, practically hearing the hero's teeth grind, "Couldn't you just drop what your doing for a little while and hang out with us? This is team bonding time! We need good, quality bonding with our leader that doesn't involve sparring matches or missions."

"...I will Cass, promise. Just as soon as I'm done."

Growling a defeated sigh, the girl stomped back to the pool, sharing her fruitless efforts with the rest of the team. Most of the senior residents understood her failure in persuasion.

"Typical Wing-nut. Don't blame yourself, Cass, the guy's always been like this." KF shook his head, mocking dramatic pity. "Like, _always_. Even before the team. It's a Bat-family thing." Robin sent the green-eyed redhead a pointed glower. "Oh, like _you_ don't do it either."

"Once he gets like this, there's no getting him out of it until he's done." Rocket shrugged, hugging the toned blonde girl around the shoulders. "Trust me baby girl, me and Zee here? We had the _saaaame_ problem with former boy wonder." The young woman drawled with her usual sass, making the magician giggle in agreement. Cassie wasn't entirely convinced, but she let it drop.

Nearly two hours later, to the surprise of everyone in the cave, Batgirl showed up. "Sorry I'm late, everyone. Hope I didn't miss too much." She smirked behind a white-lace mask that, like her cowl, still showed off her iridescent green-blue eyes. It matched her one-shouldered bathing suit: a black piece with a white band around the entire neckline that included the shoulder tie and drew her figure into the perfect hourglass. The team greeted her with excitement, immediately immersing her into the festivities. Choosing to leave the boys to their games in the pool for now, the only female bat of the bat-clan sat with the rest of the girls, dropping her bag on the ground beside her. She sat next to Cassie, messing with the girls hair just to irk her.

"So, what _have_ I missed?" The teen prodded as she reclined, pulling the chopsticks out of her hair bun and letting her sunset scarlet locks tumble down her back, shaking it out.

"Erm, let's see...well, Wally and Bart have gone through half the food we had prepped by now, I think."

"Not a surprise."

"Haha, I know. I played cards with the boys, but I'm pretty sure they were all cheating with their own powers. Well, except for Robin, cause he doesn't have any powers. And I think Mal just had a lot of experience."

"Batman trained us in the handy art of card games." Batgirl said off-hand, gladly accepting a drink from M'gann.

"Why am I not surprised?" Cassie chuckled, ticking more events off her fingers. "Uh, L'gann super-soaked everyone; Bart tried to imitate ice skating on the pool using super speed but kind of failed; Artemis punched Wally; Robin and Blue had a staring contest that lasted literally four minutes; Zatanna used her magic to get us catered food; Artemis punched Wally again; and Wally and Conner built a water slide off improv' with Nightwing's calculations." She finished, gesturing to the group of girls they sat in, "And right now we're playing truth or dare."

"I see..." The redhead looked around. "Say, where _is_ Nightwing?" Cassie let out a growl of annoyance, making Bumblebee and Rocket laugh and M'gann shake her head at the poor girl. Batgirl raised an elegant brow in question.

"Don't remind me." Cassie grumbled. "I tried calling him, but did he listen? No! He's all zoned out in this stupid attempt to fix the Zeta-tubes."

"Is _that_ so?" Batgirl's eyes narrowed dangerously and she stood with conviction, stomping toward the monitor womb. "Let's see if I can't change that..."

The team watched as the girl stormed off, where Beast Boy was naive to ask, "Where's she going?"

"Ooh, Cassie," Artemis laughed darkly, "You just called on the big guns and you didn't even know it." The archer was quick to leap to her feet, chasing out after the she-bat with her boyfriend to watch the scene that was about to go down. Robin followed with a groan of despair: this was not going to end well.

"NIGHT! WING!"

The rest of the team went chasing after them.

* * *

Dick was so engulfed in his task that he nearly jumped out his skin when he heard an all-too familiar voice yell out his name.

"NIGHT! WING!"

Visibly grimacing, he schooled his face back to normal, ignoring the heated presence now standing behind him. "Batgirl." He greeted with ease. Then, he realized, turning around, "Wait, Bat-gyaah!" He yelped, behind tackled to the ground without warning. He stared up wide-eyed at the redhead glaring at him.

"What're you doing?" She demanded.

The blue bird frowned, knowing from that look in her eyes that he wasn't arguing with Batgirl, but Barbara. This wasn't going to be easy. "Working. Fixing. Getting stuff done."

"There's a snowstorm outside. Half the cave is down, and this area of the country has low activity because of the overall snow clouds. And the entire team is here, throwing a pool party." She rebutted, tutting once. "Why?"

"Because as much as I'd like to join you guys, I have a responsibility to this team and the League _and_ the people we fight for to make sure we're ready at a moment's notice. Right now, we're stuck in a rut."

Barbara sighed woefully, dramatically. This is what confirmed it to Dick that he was speaking to his best friend the stubborn redhead and not the heroine. "Y'know pixie boots," She began.

"Hey you promised-!" He yowled, stopping when the girl was suddenly nose to nose with him, her minty breath mingling with his. She had his hands pinned over his head, and was at a cross between sitting and lying down on his stomach.

"Remember that _annoying_ laugh of yours? I actually miss it. You wanna know why? You're so stressed lately that you haven't loosened up in far too long. As I recall, _I'm_ supposed to be the fun-sucker between the two of us, not you." She told him, pinching pressure points that caused his arms to go limp. She smirked deviously, slinking down his body, making the ever suave Nightwing blush up to his ears.

It didn't help that most of the team caught up to them at that very moment, catching them in a very compromising and misleading position. He could see Tim was just as red with humiliation as he was, if not more. Wally and Artemis, on the other hand, almost looked like they were cheering it on. Damn them.

"B-Bar-," He caught himself, "Batgi-." He voice pitched up an octave when the girl started pulling down his pants. "WHAT are you DOING?"

"Taking your clothes off, what's it look like?" She chuckled as if it were obvious. "Unless you don't care that I throw you in the pool in uniform." She continued pulling his uniform off until he was down to his boxers. Dick wished the earth could swallow him now and save him the humiliation in front of the _entire_ team.

"Batgirl," He took a deep breath, "I'm going to give you exactly ten seconds to put my pants back on and walk away."

"Sorry, sweetheart, but you've forced me to intervene and bring back your spirit of fun and mischief from its untimely grave." She held up a pair of swimming shorts, black and white with a blue water pattern in a stripe. "Got these for ya when I went out to get a new bathing suit for myself. I know you have no sense of style of your own."

"How very thoughtful," He deadpanned as she slipped them on, "I'm flattered."

She spun back around so that she was now seated on his stomach facing him. "And I'm flatt_ened_ that you didn't mention anything about it." She said, suggestively tossing her hair over her shoulder and coyly smiling. "You like it?"

His blush deepened.

She smirked.

"It's...nice."

"So's your ass." Before he could say anything she cut him off. "Now, give me a great big boy-wonder smile and say you'll come to the party. And you have to mean it."

"No."

"C'mon."

"No."

"Nightwing."

"No."

"Wing-nut!"

"No!"

"Pixie boots!"

"Tinkerbell!"

"Stop it!"

"You stop it!"

"Grrr-aaaaah!" She snarled, heatedly having a glare-off with the teen she straddled. "R."D."G.W.," She ground out through her teeth viciously, "You stop working and come to the pool right now."

Dick narrowed his eyes right back at her, smirking that he'd gotten under her skin. "Make me."

Exactly 0.0001 seconds later, Dick regretting taunting her.

Scooting back so that she sat more on his thighs, Barbara grinned menacingly and proceeded to blow air bubbles into Dick's toned abdomen. The young hero burst out laughing, squirming and thrashing to get away from her. She, however, managed to keep him pinned down, and mercilessly tickled him to no end. Dick's laughed echoed throughout the cave.

The two were either completely oblivious to the fact that the team was still right behind them or they just didn't care at this point. Either way, they were all stunned. They'd never seen behavior like this from either of them before.

"I'm gonna go drown myself in the pool in shame now." That is except for Robin, who was as red as his uniform and trying to make a clean getaway.

("Hahaha, Bats, hahah, let me go!")

"Does anyone else know if they're, y'know, an item? Bumblebee asked, to which everyone cluelessly shrugged.

("B, please-hahhahaa-no, not there! Hahahaha...!")

("Promise you won't work for the rest of the day!")

"If they're not, they should be." Zatanna piped up. "They're hot together."

Wally elbowed Artemis, which Connor caught sight of. "I'm thinking we can call em 'BatWing' or maybe 'NightBat'." Connor rolled his eyes at the speedster.

"How about 'Dibs GrayDon'?" The blonde archer suggested for her ever-eager boyfriend.

"Babe, you're a genius."

("Hahahahhaaa, B! I-hahahahha-can't-hahahahah-breathe! Uncle, uncle!")

("Say it!")

("Alright, fine, promise!")

"Looks like someone could be getting a new hot sister!" Jaime teased, catching Robin in a headlock and giving his a noogie that Bart joined in on.

"Hey Robbie, promise that when you find out you're gonna be an uncle that you tell me first!"

They all returned to the pool, Nightwing having caved to Batgirl, and the dynamic couple of bat now piggybacking on the bird in a mad dash for the water. It wasn't until the day was long and done that the team even bothered to wonder _how_ Batgirl had made it to the cave with transportation down, and by then she and Nightwing had already left. (Many suggestive jokes were made, of course.)

Late in the evening, when they were all huddled having a _Marvel_ movie marathon, Batman arrived, livid.

"Nightwing and Batgirl, where are they?" He demanded. The team was too scared to answer, so Robin did.

"They left a few hours ago, said they were headed home for R&R." He then added, "Is something wrong?"

Batman's eyes narrowed. "They stole the Bat-mobile."

* * *

A/n: I could've made this really short and included only the end bit, but I wanted to include more of the team. I don't have that much experience writing out big groups of characters that are well-developed, and the end result probably makes more sense than just "Batgirl starts a tickle fight with Nightwing in a bikini."

Hot, yes, but it'd be confusing. Admit it.

Reeeeeview :)


	5. Family

A/n: Christmas is Monday night, but the end of the world is...er, today. What bullshittery is this?! I have a blu-ray combo pack of _The Dark Knight_ taunting me under my tree! And footie Bat pajamas! The Mayans are trolls.

I won't even lie, I think this was the prompt I was looking forward to the most. It's a toss up between this and what I have in mind for "gifts."

Hopefully the having the entire Batfamily feature won't overshadow the Dibs in this submission. They're just so perfect to me I couldn't resist. I mean, c'mon: Batfamily. BatFAMILY.

Don't you love bullshit excuses?

I'm gonna go ahead and stop talking now.

This chapter is set in the future. Bear in mind the following: Artemis and Kaldur's cover was blown. It's been another four years since the events of year five (the show's current story line) that we are aware of. The Light has gone ape-shit on the world for domination. There are more members on the team (you as the reader can decide who).

_Italics are flashbacks._ **Bold is communication via the mind link.** I apologize in advance if the set-up of this prompt is confusing to follow along with. This is also my longest submission to date...sorry! I tried to keep it short, but plot bunnies!

* * *

Five - Family

_**"My family's menu consisted of two choices: take it or leave it."- Buddy Hackett**_

* * *

_This was it. The end of the world; of freedom as they knew it. The Justice League and Young Justice team had been fighting a tedious battle against the Light for nearly a decade now, and in the past two years everything began to go downhill. They'd naively believed that they had the upper hand, that _finally _they were accomplishing something. Oh how they were wrong._

_The Light struck all at once, and they hit hard. After years of what seemed like procrastination, they'd created a criminal web of allegiances. They'd studied the heroes. They knew their weaknesses, how to hit them, and which angle it hurt the most. They spread worldwide fear and panic. Chaos was taking over. Heroes were taken down. Were taken hostage. Were killed._

_They were sent a single message that numbed them to the core: surrender and survive or perish._

_The heroes foolishly believed they were bluffing, so they made their point very clear. Members of the Bat-brood that went MIA on various field missions were held for "public trial." The explosion was broadcasted worldwide as some sort of sick spectacle. Every last one of them, killed._

_If a Bat couldn't save himself, then what chance did they have?_

_Six months had passed since that incident, and the numbers of the heroes were growing dangerously thin. There was no lines or titles dividing senior members from freshman, or experienced from novice, or old from young. There was just teamwork. No man left behind. Save who you can. Anyone who was unheard of within twelve hours of disappearance was labelled MIA. Twenty four hours and it became KIA. If you were still alive, you were on your own, and had to find the quickest way possible to contact the team and the nearest rendezvous point to reunite._

_In these times, they just couldn't afford any risks anymore._

_Their latest toll had been a great one. The capital of the United States was attacked one more. Only this time, it seemed like they had no choice but to retreat. The President himself ordered them to retreat and regroup. The world needed the saviors it still had, otherwise they were doomed._

_They left a measly thirty-four men strong, and returned sixteen. Tonight, hope truly looked like a thing of the past._

_But they forgot that the night was always darkest before the dawn._

"Establishing radio communications: Alpha squad, Nightwing online."

"Alpha squad, Robin present."

"This is Beta squad, 'Alpha-Batgirl' reporting."

"Beta two, Hood in the hood."

"This is Gamma, Red Robin online."

"Gamma squad, Blackbat is here."

"Gamma three, 'Beta-Batgirl'."

"Delta squad, Agent A. All medical stations are ready for the hostages. Mobile Zeta-platform is functional."

"Delta squad, Batwoman. Airspace is cleared and plane is concealed. Drop zone in thirty seconds."

Nightwing nodded once, glaring down to the battle-torn earth below them. "Confirmed. Until radio security is acquired, this line is silent with the exception of dire emergency or information. We communicate through the mind link. Keep your heads clear, thoughts short, and update your team's field status every thirty seconds." He ordered. "Agent A, is Manhunter is position?"

"Ready to initiate telepathic communications with Miss Martian and the other heroes, Nightwing." The eloquent man replied.

"Good, wire us in." He ordered. It only took a moment for The blue bird to recognize the familiar tickle of M'gann's mind link filter through his head.

**'This is M'gann with all of Omega. Everyone here is linked in to your minds. We can hear your thoughts and see what you see loud and clear. How's your end?'**

**'Bats and birds, sound off: Nightwing.'**

**'Black Bat.'**

**'Red Hood.'**

**'Alpha-Bat.'**

**'Beta-Bat.'**

**'Red Robin.'**

**'Robin.'**

Nightwing gave another nod in satisfaction, reviewing everyone's roles in the mission precisely as they reviewed and made sure they had all supplies on them.

"Drop zone in ten..." Batwoman announced over the radio. The seven heroes positioned themselves at the open bomb bay of the plane, all in their teams. "Five, four, three..."

"Stay together no matter _what_ happens." Nightwing firmly ordered as they all lined up. They shared one quick, final look together. In one way or another, their hearts tightened, almost as if they'd hugged each other. "Let's show these people _exactly_ who they're dealing with."

They each gave a nod with the fiercest Batglares they'd ever worn. They each tensed, ready for their running leap into the sky, waiting for the command.

Nightwing said it with the most bone-chilling determination they'd ever heard.

"Fly."

Watching as they dove from the bomb bay of the plane ran goosebumps down their spine. The Young Justice team had seen bat-family members fight, but never had they seen such a large group of them together, working in unspoken synchrony. It was enviously mesmerizing, awe-inspiring, and badass as hell.

These were the people that inspired heroes to be heroes. It was ironic that none of them possessed superpowers, just raw skill.

_"Justice Allegiance, come in." A fuzzy voice came over the monitor of the main computer in the Watchtower. There was an incoming video feed. The link was patchy, but it was there._

_Imagine their shock when the Young Justice members saw the face of their former leader thought dead._

_"Nightwing!" They cried out, everyone present clambering for the screen. Mixed chatter of disbelief and relief, questions to his whereabouts, and many other things were thrown at him. He missed most of it, due to his end of the line having worse reception than theirs. But when the team saw that Batgirl, _the_ Batgirl the _first_, was on the computer at their end clearing up interference, their hearts soared through the roof. They'd thought that she died years ago._

_"Nightwing, you-you guys are alive!" Artemis smiled incredulously, uncharacteristically emotional. "And Batgirl! How-?"_

_"No time for questions, Artemis. I need an update on your status' now. First order of business, how many of you are safe in the Tower? Give me a headcount, then YJ members, then JL members."_

_Black canary took charge for the moment. "Presently, sixteen. Nine Young Justice, four Justice League, and two non-member allies."_

_"Physical conditions?" The blue bird asked._

_"No one left unscathed, but thankfully there's no fatal injuries at the moment. We've made it a point to try and be ready at a moments notice since your...presumed death."_

_He nodded thoughtfully. "Are you at least all awake and conscious? Right now?"_

_"Ready for anything, Nightwing." M'gann spoke for the team._

_"Good, because I have a plan, and we need your help." He announced, making everyone alert._

Reaching a certain point in their descent, their capes snapped open, taught, becoming their wings. From above, the Robins looked like birds; the three girls looked like bats; Red Hood looked like a hawk; Nightwing looked like an eagle. The seven vigilantes were silent shadows are they soared in the night sky through plumes of smoke clouds. They wove their way through skyscrapers with their target in sights: a jewel of architectural construction and a landmark building of the city: a skyscraper, compromised of three buildings, futuristic in appearance. It's purpose was the the home of a renown computer-sciences facility. Currently, the Light took possession of it and were stashing captured superheros there.

**'Reaching zone A; initiate phase one.'** Nightwing called out. **'Beta on point.'**

**'Finally. Let's show these guys how to party.'** Red Hood said with a smirk in his tone, breaking away from the group. **'I know you won't miss me, but don't miss me while I'm gone.'**

**'Don't get ahead of yourself yet, Hood.' **Alpha-Batgirl follow him, the duo disappearing behind a building.

The other five continued on towards the skyscraper they had their sights set on for another few blocks until they hit their next spot.

**'Zone B; you know what to do, Gamma.'**

**'Distract, divert, and disarm security.'** Red Robin confirmed, taking a nose dive to get closer to the ground.

**'Consider it done.'** Blackbat rang confidently, taking route one block up and leaving a trail of mini sonic boomers in her wake.

**'We'll meet you guys inside before you know it.'** Beta-Batgirl sounded like she was smirking as well, taking the lower block. The trio was going to push right through whatever henchman waiting for them from all angles.

As soon as they cleared away, Nightwing and Robin took to the shadows. The eldest of the brood glanced at the youngest. Robin's cape went limp, and he hung onto Nightwing's ankle as the elder bird continued to fly, pulling a gun from the back of his utility belt. It was loaded with timed bombs encased in highly viscous and sticky putty. He fired the weapon at the windows of the building, and the bombs went off in exactly ten seconds after contact with the glass, providing their point of entry.

**'Alpha on point; we're heading in.'**

_"At various points in time, most members of the Allegiance had some sort of visit with different locations of the Lotus Science and Technology Corp. The layout of the building as well are security and potential traps are tucked away in your subconscious; they're consistent even in different cities and countries which works well in our favor." Nightwing began explaining. "M'gann, we need you to establish a mind link. If possible, create a web among yourselves there to extract that information and make it readily accessible for us. Usually we don't operate blind, but our resources here are low and if we don't act now we might not get another chance. You guys will be our maps, eyes, and warning."_

_"Nothing I can't handle," The Martian said with ease. Batgirl left the front of the screen, leaving only Nightwing there. "Where do we rendezvous with you two?"_

_"You don't. There isn't enough time." The hero quipped._

_"What do you mean there isn't enough time?!" Impulse snapped. "Wherever you are, I'm sure there's a way to get to you fast. There's hidden Zeta-tubes all over the world!"_

_"And as far as we know, only 6% of them are running at full capacity. You guys are staying at the tower, that's where we need you. Make sure the Zeta-tubes are online and get all medical equipment there ready. You guys are Omega squad."_

_"Omega?!" Artemis yowled._

_"Nightwing, what the hell do you think you're doing?" Canary growled at the younger hero. "Where are you and Batgirl?"_

_"In the Bat-jet, twenty-six minutes from Shanghai." He answered. "We've pinpointed where they've moved the hostage Allegiance members, being guarded by League of Shadow elites. We're bringing them home."_

Infiltrating the science building was quick and easy. Too easy. Immediately upon entrance, Nightwing and Robin laid out all the ingredients for their escape route, concealing them until their return. As they made their way deep into the building, they lay booby traps of their own for precaution, fighting the assassins they encountered on their way down. Back at the watchtower, Omega squad sat with silent minds, speaking only when any member of the batfamily needed speaking to. Everyone needed utmost concentration.

Gamma team shortly joined Alpha inside the building, also fighting off their own enemies as they made their way to the hostages.

**'Beta reporting, hostages reached.'** Alpha-Batgirl echoed in their minds.

**'How many are with you?'**

**'You're not going to believe this, but **_**everyone**_**.'** Red Hood spoke up, shock clear in his voice.** 'At least as far as I can tell. Bats here knows your pals better than I do. I'm pretty sure I may fired a gun at a few of these guys at some point. And I flipped Superman the bird twi- no, actually, three times. Don't think the guy likes me. Then again, I don't like him either.'**

**'Hood's right, Nightwing. We've got just about everyone here. Only six missing.'** The redhead confirmed. **'We don't have enough vials of adrenaline to inject in everyone between the two of us. We're going to have to fall back on plan B.'**

**'Roger that. Gamma, do you copy?'**

**'Loud and clear. We're headed down now.'** Red Robin answered.

**'Acknowledged. Alpha will provide cover. Delta squad, report.'**

**'So far no aerial interference, but that may be subject to change very soon. It seems like they've got reinforcements headed your way on the ground. I'm holding them off now, but I can only cover so much ground.'** Batwoman answered.

Down in the containment cells, Batgirl and Red Hood quickly got to work. Pulling out a supply of fresh needles from their backup utility belts strapped over their shoulders, they took a handful of vials containing adrenaline shots and ready for use. They decided on taking up four members at a time: two for each to bodyguard on their way up. The injections were intravenous, through the bend of the elbow, and worked it's magic in moments. They were greeted with dazed, fatigued heroes and hauled them to their feet.

The adrenaline rush wasn't long-lasting. They had to get the heroes up five stories in ten minutes.

_"You're insane! There's no way the two of you can get through Shadow assassins on your own and get them back. You need back up!" Red Arrow argued._

_"You guys are back up-."_

_"You need back up _there_!" The archer continued. Nightwing raised an eyebrow. Was he...smirking?_

_"Who says we're going in alone?" The camera turned to the left, revealing seven more people present on the plane, all armoring up for the fight about to be had. They couldn't believe what they were seeing. _

_"Robin! And Batgirl! And another Batgirl and Robin?" Wonder girl cheered, somewhat confused as she looked at the screen. "Wait," She counted._

_Apparently, so were the others. "There are _four_ Batgirls?" Beast Boy pointed out._

_"Actually, it's Bat_woman_, Batgirl I, Batgirl II, and Batgirl III that now goes by Blackbat." Nightwing corrected. "You guys all know Red Robin, and that's Robin V."_

_"Who's the creeper in the helmet?" Beast Boy asked again. Even with a poor signal they heard said man let out a grumble of anger._

_"That's Red Hood."_

_"Hm. Never heard of him."_

_"Oh, you probably have. He's part of the family. He's like...those 'once removed cousins' cases." The blue bird cryptically explained._

_"Ah, noted. And the other guy?"_

_"Agent A, arguably the first member of the Batfamily." He said. "The telepathic link will be connected with all of us here. I know that _we_ are too far out of range, but there's someone here that I know you can communicate with no matter where on the planet he is."_

_M'gann nearly broke down into tears when the showed her uncle J'onn lying down on a gurney, injured but alive._

_Nightwing went on to explain what happened to him in the six months of his absence. Obviously yes, he was captured, and yes, they nearly did kill him. The reason for that was to get under his family's skin, Batman's especially, and it worked. They nearly did take them all out. Somehow, someone in the Light had uncovered their civilian identities, and they hunted down the Batfamily through those means. He explained how Batgirl the first saved Robin the fifth and Agent A from being killed in their own homes; how Red Robin saved Batwoman, whom wasn't even a member of the League and just an ally; how Batgirl the second and Blackbat were caught and taken to the same location, where they were going to be put away with other heroes but managed to help each other escape; and how Red Hood, an outlaw, caused the raucous that helped him survive the explosion and try to save Batman. Their mentor didn't die, but he was still captured. They managed to save Martian Manhunter. They each went into hiding, first collecting their own resources for means of survival, then coming into contact with each other. For the family that fights together sticks together. _

_Now, their small family was more than ready to take out their vendetta on the Light and bring back _everyone's_ family. Because in the end, that's what they all were._

The bats and birds switched intervals, each guarding two superheroes at a time up to the escape floor Nightwing and Robin broke in through. Their rescued comrades wanted to help them fight, but they left no room for argument and sent them up to the plane where Agent A would help patch up and serious wounds before Zeta-beaming them to the Watchtower. The process was becoming more and more difficult to repeat every time they went to pick up a new batch, but they persisted harder.

The teams worked in perfect harmony. Back at the Watchtower, Omega were in awe as they watched them. It was almost like a well-rehearsed performance. Where one left an opening, the other defended. When one person stunned the opponent, the other kicked them down, and both would have them bound in instants. With them all fighting so close together like this, you could see traces and elements of Batman's fighting style and tactics. Yet they were all so extraordinary in their own right that even for Robin, technically the novice, their styles were already involved into their own signatures.

They were all Dark Knights.

Finally, they reached the last three: Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman. Robin burst into the room and went straight for his father, poking he needle into the man's arm with expertise and delivering him the adrenaline. When the man came to, the boy tried to hide a smile, instead only smirking coyly. "You disappoint me yet again, Batman. First time we met I thought you'd be taller, and now you fall prey to the very people that were your mentors and mine."

The Bat glared through his delirium, standing. "Complications occurred, were overcome. This was the best solution at the time. We need to bring this place down." He ordered.

"Already on that." Nightwing replied, helping a now awake Wonder Woman hoist Superman to his feet. No needle could penetrate the man of steel's skin, so he'd have to be carried out. "But you three need to get out now. The adrenaline shots only last ten minutes, and that's when Batwoman's coming around with the jet for the last pick-up. Help Wonder Woman with Superman. Robin and I will cover you." The Bat and his first protege had a glare off. After all, nobody's ever had the gall or success in giving the Batman orders. Nightwing caught wind of this. "Agent A won't let you off easy if you don't cooperate with our plan of attack."

Batman scowled. Of course the only person that bossed him around was in on this.

**'Gamma to all squads, we've got a problem. A big one. The latest wave of reinforcements are no longer entering the building, they're setting up a perimeter of explosives. Blackback got a hold of one of their comms, they're using C-4s. By what Beta-Batgirl and I can see, we've got five, maybe six minutes until they make it look like they dropped a nuke on this place.'** Red Robin informed them. Nightwing mulled on their new circumstances for a moment, looking at Batman.

"You still have your grappling gun on that utility belt?"

"All three of them."

Nightwing signaled for the five to start heading up. "Good, then we'll make it out of here in four." **'Alpha to all squads, new plan. Regroup and retreat. Make as clear a path as you can up to the escape point and get there. Beta squad, are your detonators in position?'**

**'First thing we did when we got in.'** Alpha-Batgirl told him.

**'Good. As soon as Alpha squad's made sure Superman, Wonder Woman, and Batman's cleared the fifth story, I'm setting them off. We're riding up the layers of the explosions. As soon as your squad reaches the Sky-Hooks, grab one and go. They'll be higher up, on the sixth story of the building. No questions asked. Understood?'**

**'Clear.'** They chorused back.

**'Batwoman, you copy that?'**

**'I heard you. circling back to the tower now.'**

**'Move out!'**

_The plan was short and simple. Through M'gann's ability to establish a mental link with J'onn no matter where he was thanks to the extraordinary growth of her powers, she's put up a mind link with the Batfamily. Said heroes were prepared with countless numbers of battle supplies and dozens of viles of epinephrine: an intracardiac-injection adrenaline drug unsed in the medical practice in cases of emergencies. In order to move out all the heroes quickly, they'd wake them up by using these and have them run to the plane on their own to feet while they provided cover. After that, they'd blow the building, and make damn well sure that whoever was in charge of keeping their allies imprisoned knew just how much they'd pissed off the League._

_When all was said and done and sorted out, J'onn was awakened to give him enough time to communicate with M'gann. In that meanwhile, the brood prepared themselves on board. Nightwing, the unspoken leader, issued their duties and positions._

_"For this plan to work we'll be operating in five teams. The Watchtower is Omega. They will be our eyes in the building. Any advice or warning they give, you acknowledge. Delta squad will provide airspace coverage and keep any reinforcements they send at bay, as well as help in the medical bay. Alpha, Beta, and Gamma squads will be on the ground. Gamma will provide distraction for Alpha and Beta to enter the building unnoticed, then begin clearing out security from the ground floor up. Beta is the ace in the hole: they will enter the building from below and rig the entire skyscraper's infrastructure. Alpha will enter the building from above, setting up the Sky Hooks-Bat-tech that zip lines an individual from any given location on the ground to any plane in flight-for escape and clearing out security as they make their way down the building. Once the first tasks are completed, everyone begins rotating and getting the hostages out._

_"Robin, you and I are Alpha squad. Ready the Sky Hooks. Hood, Batwoman, you two are Beta. round up all the ammo we've got and light the bottom of that building up like a Christmas tree. And Hood, _no live ammo._"_

"_Tch, kill-joy."_

"_Red, Blackbat, uh..." The ebony-haired man faltered, looking at both blonde and redhead Batgirls. The girls shared a look, seeing his dilemma. He didn't want to label them by hair colors or suit colors. "Should we call you Bats one and two?"_

"_I think Alpha-Bat and Beta-Bat will work fine." The blonde of the two girls suggested, looking up to her elder who nodded in agreement._

"_Alright. Then Beta-Bat, you'll be the third member on Gamma squad. Alpha-Bat, you and Agent A will be Delta squad. Gather what you need and meet back with J'onn in ten minutes. Go."_

_The group split up, but not before Batgirl (the first) ran after Nightwing and pulled him back._

The explosions went off early. The building rumbled with the vibrations the multitude of bombs created, and soon everything began to shift to the left as the Skyscraper began to tilt. Nightwing cursed under his breath. they were high up, but not enough to reach the plane or the Sky Hooks. With all the firepower going off, it'd be too risky for the plane to come this low. They needed to get to the very top of the building.

They were down two minutes. Two minutes left.

'**Nightwing!'** Some of the teams called out.

'**I know!'** The blue bird retorted as he defended his youngest sibling from a bullet. **'Robin, that elevator shaft. Get to it and see if it's clear.'** He ordered. **'Team, what are your positions?'**

'**Gammas one, two, and three: 49th floor.'**

'**Beta one, just blasted a hole two floors up to 58th floor.'**

'**Beta two, 56th floor and moving.'**

The eagle cussed under his breath. At the rate the bombs were going off now, they wouldn't make it up to the 82nd floor before the integrity of the building collapsed in on itself, and Alpha squad was still on the 44th floor. The quickest way up at this point was grapple-lining up the elevator shafts before those broke down. In order for that to happen, he needed to balance out the tipping building with counter-explosions.

He needed to go back down.

'**Elevators are clear, Nightwing.'**

'**Good. Take the Batman and the others to it and zip up to the top floor. Meet up with Gamma five floors up. Think you can handle that?'**

'**Tt, of course! I'm appalled you'd even ask such a stupid question!'**

'**Then take them and go, **_**now**_**.'**

'**And where are you going?'**

'**To keep this place from falling in on our heads.'**

'**But you said-!'**

'**I know what I said, Robin, but we don't have a choice right now! GO!'**

"_Delta squad? You gave me Delta squad?!" Batgirl hissed at him, giving him a bone-chilling batglare. "What, am I not qualified enough for field work?!"_

"_Delta _is_ field-!"_

"_You _know_ what I mean, Nightwing. This is insulting! You're basically making me sit here useless while the rest of you put your lives on the line down there!" She argued with him. "Ever since this hell started six months ago you've done nothing but give me safe missions. What the hell is up with that?"_

_Nightwing glared back at her. "The missions I give you are just as important as the ones I give the others. I'm in awe that you'd take that so lightly."_

"_No they're not and you know it. So _why_ are you treating me like I'm some sort of helpless child?! Am I suddenly not good enough?"_

"_No, that's not-."_

"_Because let me tell you that I am sick and tired of being pushed to the back-burner and I am not going to sit up here and watch and be well-behaved while everyone else is down there." She spat, a glimmer of angry tears in her eyes. "For years all I could do was sit around and provide backup, and I am not going to do that again when I can do more. So _what_ the _hell_ is your problem? Why am I Delta?!"_

"_Because I don't want you to get hurt!" Nightwing exploded, yelling right back in her face and stunning the girl. She stood wide-eyed, watching at the taller man pinched the bridge of his nose._

"_...What?"_

"_Barbara..." He let out a weary sigh, "I know it's been more than a year. And I know that you've been back in the game for a year. But to me, it still feels like it was just yesterday that you got your legs back. I'm not questioning your ability. It was _never_ in question, not before, not as Oracle, and not as Batgirl again. I'm just worried for you."_

_She scoffed. "Well I don't see why not. You-."_

"_Because I love you, Barbara!"_

'**All squads take the elevator shafts up to the 82 floor! Alpha is coming up in express shaft four, immediate back-up requested! Whichever squad is closest to the Sky Hooks call it and pick them up! Take it up to the the top floor with you and set them up immediately! One minute, fifty-three seconds remaining!'**

'**This is Beta, we've got the Sky Hooks!'**

Beta squad reached the 60th floor first and gathered the Sky Hooks to take up to the top floor. Running to the nearest elevator, they blew the doors open heading up. As they went, Batgirl glanced down to see the others following, clouds of smoke screens and mini-boomer throwing stars and bat-a-rangs in their wake. they were coming up fast.

She noticed the absence of one and narrowed her eyes.

"Jason," She said, tossing her armful of Sky-Hooks at the former Robin when she had his attention. His eyes betrayed his confusion when the line for her grappling hook stopped pulling her up. "Get those ready for the others and get to the plane. Make sure everyone reports when they're in the plane." She ordered.

"Where the hell are you going?"

"Down." She said simply, her line going slack as she plummeted into the shadows.

The anti-hero let out a frustrated grunt, "Why am I always left picking up slack?"

'**This is Alpha-Batgirl to Omega squad. Give me Nightwing's coordinates now.'**

_Before she could register what was happening, he was kissing her. And before she could even come to her senses, she was kissing him back. It was deep, longing, and with so much fear and desire and passion and worry all at once that it hurt. When she realized she needed to breathe, Barbara pulled away, and promptly smacked the boy in front of her clean across the face. They were both flushed and panting for air._

"_Don't do that." She snarled at him. "Don't _ever_ kiss me like it's the last time you'll ever see me."_

"_Ba-."_

"_I mean it, Dick!" She was trembling, but pointed right in his face threateningly. "Don't act like this is the end, cause it's not. You, better than anyone else, should know that the day we signed up to be heroes we accepted the dangers. You're either all in or you're not in it at all. So do me a favor and keep your dramatic kisses doubt-free from here on out. You're stronger than that."_

_Nightwing nodded somewhat numbly, dragging a hand over his face that finally revealed just how weary he was. "You're right, Babs. Sorry."_

"_You better be. Now switch me with Kate to Beta. She's needed to clock in flight time for a long time coming, and I think Jason will appreciate better than anyone else my destructive spirit tonight." She requested. Nightwing nodded as he rubbed his eyes. "Oh, and Dick?" She said, this time catching him by surprise with a chaste kiss. "When all this is over, I expect a much more appropriate confession and a date."_

Alpha-Batgirl reached Nightwing in the nick of time, springing him from a group of attackers and hightailing it back up the building with remarkable speed and the flawless flips that made them famous. They spoke with action and their fighting history, knowing exactly when to attack and watch each other's backs. The building was literally collapsing into itself around them as they used their grappling hooks to soar through the metal beams and fallen ceilings. Gunfire and explosions could be heard outside. They faintly recalled the remainder of the Bat-family announcing their safe return to the Bat-jet, only to be promptly informed that the jet was being fired at and wouldn't hold for long.

Nightwing gave orders to put the plane on autopilot in a looped flight pattern, then for everyone aboard to use the Zeta-tubes to beam to the Watchtower and flee.

The dynamite duo never stopped moving, and they were never more than an arm's reach away from each other. Not when they fought, not when they finally reached the sky hooks, and not when they dove from the top of building that finally burst in a great fireball of orange and yellow. The explosion sent the two hurtling to the Bat-jet that was on a crash-course to the streets of Shanghai.

They toppled in through the bomb bay and were on their feet in moments. Batgirl went straight for the control panel, uploading all of their collected data onto a flash-drive, then proceeding to wipe the computer systems clean. She then went to the the plane's commands panel and set the entire aircraft to self-destruct upon contact with the ground. While she was busy with that, Nightwing salvaged the equipment he felt was absolutely necessary, beaming it up to the tower, then ran to get Batgirl.

Up in the tower, the entirety of the Justice Alliance waited with baited breath for the return of the final two heroes. For an agonizing second, when the Bat-jet hit the ground and burst into explosive flames of red and orange, they thought they'd lost the first bird and bat for good.

Simultaneously, Batgirl and Nightwing shot out of the Zeta-beam that short-circuited with their entrance. They flew a few good feet before hitting the ground hard, rolling, and slamming to a stop into the far wall.

The Watchtower was in an uproar of cheers.

"Oowww..." Nightwing groaned painfully, unwrapping his arms from around Batgirl and lying back on the ground. "I think I broke my everything."

"Serves you right, you moron. I think I have a concussion." She grumbled back, resting her head on her arms as she lay on her stomach. "The next time you play hero and run off on your own, don't expect me to come save you." She felt his hand give her shoulder a tender squeeze.

"Thanks Babs..." He said softly, drifting into unconsciousness. The redhead felt herself smiling. Of course she went to save him, and always would.

Besides, he promised her an ice cream cake and Japanese horror movie date.

* * *

Answering reviews...

_**blaiseredfern**_: Yes she is. She takes after her daddy. (...maybe that's not so accurate lol) She take's after her daddy's gusto to solve crime!

_**FFP**_: Thanks, I'm quite proud of how that chapter turned out! I'm also glad I portrayed their hardships justly. I have so many batfamily feels I can't contain myself. If you couldn't tell before, you probably can now with this chapter.

_**anon "A"**_: (ALFRED?! You read FANFICTION?! I knew you shipped Dibs! lolz jkjk) Dickie-bird is adorable, and so is calling him "Dickie-bird" I personally hope these two will be a couple in the show. They're kind of teasing it (Dibs) in the YJ comics but then again they've also shown the 'playboy' side he picked up from Bruce. Merr. Haha, but I still love the guy. I'm ranting now. Thanks for reading and I'm glad you're enjoying my prompts so far!

_**MrGardener**_: I like drama :D Not real-life drama, that's unnecessarily exhausting. Drama in the arts and all forms of it.

_**VoidOfDoomAndCupcakes**_: Haha, would you believe I'm new to the DC Universe too? I've known the basics for most of their iconic heroes as I think most people do, but I didn't _know_ about any of them until, honestly, this past September. I put cosplays together for my friends for a con, and they all (with the exception of one) did DC heroes. One of them went as Blue Beetle, who I had no _clue_ about, so I looked him up on the greatest online source ever: YOUTUBE. Found clips of him on Young Justice...watched an episode of Young Justice...went back and watched EVERY episode of Young Justice...bawled my eyes out about the hiatus (I still had my Korra blues), and proceeded to run to all and every local comic book store to pick up issues of Young Justice and one of my favorite characters of the original team. I wanted to pace myself. It didn't work. Currently I'm keeping up with issues of YJ and the entire Batfamily with the exception of Red Robin (can't find a good place to start, no new 52 for him, and not too sure about Teen Titans), Batwoman, and Catwoman. I also went ahead and read up as much as I could about all of them (Batfamily, YJ cast, etc.) on the wonderful internet. I'm addicted and it feels so goooood. Oh, sorry if I spoiled for you by the way ;-; And welcome to DC newbie buddy!

_**TheOneRing.001**_: Thank you so much! I'm a day late with these prompts, but I'm doing my best to update them within a 24-hour time frame each. There are no set times periods for these prompts, so you could choose to think of similar events happening close to each other if you'd like. (Although I don't think "Snowstorm" and "Loss" would fit together well...I'll leave it up to you.)

_**Yayaya**_: Yay yay yay! (See what I did there?) Thank you very much!

_**Ashadow77**_: I'm glad you think so! Hopefully I can keep you entertained :)

_**IronyRocks**_: Haha thanks! I tried to go with something more upbeat after how (accidentally) angsty "Loss" turned out.

_**theban5sh3e**_: Thank you! And I'm so happy that you took the time to review after reading!

Thanks for reviewing, and please keep reviewing! I read your reviews to procrastinate at work :D


	6. Gifts

A/n: Do you readers watch Arrow? Do any of you think "Huntress" every time you see the commercial of the T-Mobile girl on the motorcycle now? Or for that matter, do you think Huntress uses T-Mobile?

Am I the only person who makes these stupid connections?

This submission brought to you in part by my recent viewing of Disney's _Dumbo_. Haven't seen it since I was a kid. I dug up my stuffed Dumbo from the basement and cuddled him for hours. My family is not impressed. I'm a college student.

Total f*cks given: 0/0

This is a fluffy one, guys!

* * *

Six - Gifts

_**"Gifts must affect the reciever to the point of shock."- Walter Benjamin**_

* * *

Dick loved surprises.

Barbara hated surprises.

Dick loved surprises because ever since he was little, he'd always had an uncanny ability to unveil them. Barbara hated surprises because she liked the facts given to her. It came with being raised by a cop for a father. Dick also loved it because aside from feeling pride and accomplishment in his discovery, it made him feel empowered. Barbara also hated it because Dick was a dick, and ever since she met him he made it a point to ruin any surprises they stumbled upon.

With this being said, one could only understand how much Barbara despised it when Dick's birthday came around. Gifts are supposed to surprises, and Dick made it a point to find out what his friends got him for his birthday before they even handed him their present. He especially loved doing this to Barbara, guessing and ruining her gift plans weeks before his birthday arrived.

It drove the girl up the walls. It made the boy fall with laughter.

For Dick's twentieth birthday, the Young Justice team wanted to throw him a surprise party. They converged on a night when Nightwing was out to Gotham, having patrol duty with Batman, and tossed ideas around. They'd decided on foods, desserts, and were on a debate for cake flavors so they'd take a tally sometime during the week. They also decided that they should make it a themed party, since they'd never thrown one before.

Wally, whom of course was present for the plotting of his best friend's party, insisted that the one thing they must not forget to include was a dance floor and, quote, "the sickest house music we can live-stream," unquote. He then shared the fact that while he may not show it, Nightwing was into music, and European house music was the equivalent of Christmas to the guy.

Of course, Batgirl and Robin, who sat quietly with the team, already knew this. The one time they managed to steal the Bat-mobile for a joyride in the past year, Dick blasted the bass on the pristine surround-sound speaker system of the car and turned the inside of the Bat-mobile into a techno-party club. Shockingly, Batman actually commended his first protege for his taste in music. He didn't spell it out, but he hinted it. Then he punished the trio by making them wash and wax _all_ of the vehicles in the Batcave. But that was beside the point.

Before noon the day after their secret meeting, Nightwing already knew of their plans. He shamelessly spilled the beans before sending them off on a mission.

"Heard you guys are throwing a party. You guys should make it circus-themed so we can all wear ridiculous costumes we _don't_ fight crime in." He grinned at them. "Oh, and I know Batgirl and Robin weren't very helpful, but my favorite cake flavor is key lime and coconut. Can it have four layers?"

Barbara smashed her teeth together to keep from yelling at Dick, who was once again being a dick.

Throughout the week it continued like this:

"You know what sort of cupcakes you guys should make instead? Red velvet, with the cream-cheese frosting? Mmm, those are _so_ good!"

"I had an idea! Since you guys stuck with my circus-theme suggestion, you should pitch up a huge tent outside like a big-top and hold the party there!"

"I heard you guys are getting games. We should have a dunk tank. Wally should be in the dunk tank."

"I appreciate that you guys want to dress me up as the ringmaster since I'm the birthday boy, but my favorite act has always been the acrobats, so I'm gonna go as that."

"Oh, oh, even better idea! We should get a human target board that spins and have a throwing knife competition! Wally should be on the board."

"M'gann, I know you were thinking about pasta, but I _reeeeeally_ want lasagna!"

"Helium balloons. Helium-filled balloons _everywhere_. For squeaky voices. You think we could get a cotton candy machine going too?"

"You know what would be hysterical? If we got a monkey! Haha, I can see the look on Supey's face already!"

"I lied. No dunk tank, no throwing knives. Let's get a trained lion and Wally can go in the cage and make it do tricks."

("No, guys, Beast Boy doesn't count.")

("Fine, let's just go with the dunk tank then...you guys are no fun.")

And the week after that led up to the party on Saturday, it went a little something like this:

"I really like those two shirts you got for me, Cassie! But I'm a size large, not medium: all this muscle's gotta go somewhere."

"Jaime, I can't believe you got me those little guitars those Mariachi band guys use! You even got a matching sombrero! C-o-o-l."

"Martian tech, M'gann? _Asteroooous_!"

And the cherry on top:

"Superman is giving me one of his capes! His SUPER-CAPES! AAAAAAHH! BEST. GIFT. EVER!"

Barbara made it a point to avoid Dick ever since they forged the plan of his not-so-secret surprise party so that he wouldn't guess her present. Dick noticed this. She'd run from him at the mountain, in the Batcave, on patrols and missions, and in Gotham. It only made him more persistent, and her more desperate.

The redheaded girl had no time to notice how much her best friend was enjoying being a complete troll. She was silently freaking out. She had no idea what to get him. Who could blame her? This was the boy-er, man...man-child-that was the adopted son of one of the world's wealthiest men. As if it weren't enough, said man, Bruce Wayne, also took the family fortune Dick was left with and somehow turned that into a small fortune of it's own. Compared to his own finances, Dick's money was like a robin sitting next to an eagle. Pun intended. Compared to her own measly librarian wage, he was like a billionaire.

The question was this: what on earth could she _possibly_ get for the guy who already had everything?

She envied the team. They didn't know Nightwing's alter-ego, so they didn't have this problem to deal with. Nightwing would appreciate their gifts all the same. So wait, if he accepted whatever he earned from them, wouldn't he be just as content with whatever _she_ got _ him_?

No. No, it wouldn't be enough. It was more than material value. Out of everyone, she was the one who knew Dick the longest, even longer than Wally. Her gift _had_ to be special. She owed to to him, if not to show how much she valued their friendship then to apologize for so many years of pathetic gifts compared to the lavish ones he always got her.

"But what?" She said to herself, sitting on her bed at home with homework and team cases spread out on the bed in front of her as she chewed on the eraser of her pencil. She pouted her plush lips in thought glaring at her phone that vibrated with a text message. "Whaaaaat?" She whined, an idea perhaps starting to come to her.

She checked the text. It was Dick. He'd just guessed the idea she wasn't even 100% confident of.

The redhead whipped her phone back on the bed and slammed a pillow in her face, screaming until she ran out of air. Commissioner Gordan was at her door in seconds, concern marring his face, finding his daughter red-faced and slamming a pillow repeatedly in her face. He slowly backed out, choosing to not get involved.

"Diiiiiick! I hate yoooooou!" Barbara complained to no one, hot and angry. Her phone buzzed again with another text, and she looked at it. It was him again.

_'Nailed it, didn't I? ;)'_

"Ugh, why do I like you?!" Oh yeah, it also didn't help that for half time time she's known him that she also had a crush on him. Not helpful at all.

Barbara dropped her pencil and pushed away her work. She sank back on her headboard rubbing her temples and watched her muted television for a while. This was hopeless. She was royally screwed.

That is, until one particular commercial came on. It sparked a memory, which blossomed into an idea that was nothing short of insane. Biting her lip, she went online to check the listing and found it. She tried to quell her excitement and keep it in check. She couldn't get her hopes up until she was certain this could happen.

It didn't stop her from grinning when she booked her flight for the next morning.

* * *

The night of the party finally came, and so far it was a huge success. Members of Young Justice and the League alike were invited, and they all were having a great time. Everything was set up to Nightwing's requests, but by the team's style. He was thrilled with it.

Wally personally showed him the dance floor and was the one to start the dance music. It was live-streamed house music from Romania. Nightwing nearly had a conundrum. Both men shared a moment which could only be described as 'totally them'.

"You guys ever watched that TV show _Scrubs_?" Flash commented, watching his nephew screaming and doing the Dougie with Nightwing, who was doing a mile of dance moves a minute in excitement, screaming as well. "I swear those two are like the real-life JD and Turk." They looked like teenage girls at a school dance.

"I'm in love with a man-child." Artemis cried, dropping her head in her hand in humiliation. Beside her, Green Arrow laughed a little too hard at the irony (the girl always called her mentor a man-child) and the young woman glared at him. "And like that's not enough, I pretty much have to live with his man-child best friend too. Why me?"

In short, everyone was having a blast at the party. Hell, even Batman stopped by briefly to wish his ward a happy birthday. He didn't stay (Batman doesn't do parties) for someone had to patrol Gotham. He dropped a set of keys in Nightwing's hands before leaving. "Try not to scratch them up in a week." The younger heroes ran outside the tent after an excited Nightwing to see his present from Batman. The blue bird laughed his signature cackle, doing flips toward his newly upgraded ("totally pimped out") Wing-mobile and his brand new Wing-cycle.

However, as the festivities continued and fun was being had (Robin, much to Nightwing's delight, rigged the dunk tank so that Wally fell in _all the time_), there was something missing. Or rather, someone. When that someone finally showed up, the birthday boy immediately noticed.

"Batgirl!" He yelled, an eager smile on his face as he ran at the girl from the dance floor. It completely flew over his head that she was trying to sneak in unnoticed. Asides from being a little sweaty from so much hardcore dancing, the raven-haired young man looked handsome. He was in dark blue jeans; skater sneakers that were black with vibrant red and blue accents that glowed in the dark; a simple black muscle tee with an unbuttoned, green-white-and-blue-plaid t-shirt thrown over it with the sleeves rolled up; and a circus-themed domino mask with swirls of blues and silvers on white that showed his eyes. All the guests present wore some sort of circus-themed accessory. They didn't go with the costume idea, much to Nightwing's chagrin. "What took you so long?"

"I, uh, got caught up with work. And getting your present." Getting his present _here_, but she left that detail out. The raven-haired teen rolled his eyes theatrically.

"Alas, my dearest Batgirl, verily you must know that I have no care for such things. I'm perfectly happy just knowing you'd come, which you have, so we're all set." He grinned charmingly. "You look...different." He said, eying her figure up and down. The teen blushed self-consciously, wringing her purse in her hands subconsciously. She had a yellow blouse on that was lace in the front, sheer in the back, and very airy; a short dark-denim jacket; snow-white shorts; and lace-print flats. Her hair looked purposely messy, braided to one side and loosely tied at the end.

"Like I said, I was kind of in a rush to get here." She reiterated, trying to brush off her nerves. She wasn't nervous because he was blatantly checking her out (OK, maybe a tiny bit), it was because of what she was hiding. "I wanted to try something spring-y, in lieu of the party being outside and your birthday being on the first day of spring."

He nodded, beaming, "You look great. Now how about you get traught and enjoy the fun? There's no use in hiding your little secret from me, I bet I already know what you got me." He grinned mischievously, pinching her cheeks and shoving a cup of punch in her hands before running off. "Wally, she's here! Let's bust out the cake already, I want to open the rest of my presents!"

Barbara rubbed her cheek with a sore pout, rolling her eyes, but let his gesture slide. She was immediately rallied by Cassie, who dragged her into the party and to hang out with the others of the team. The guests gathered around the large buffet table that had the dessert spread, it's centerpiece a tall six-tier birthday. Using her magic, Zatanna lit up all the candles simultaneously, and the group started singing happy birthday to the birthday boy. After a great big cheer and applause, Nightwing blew out all the candles, ducking out of the way before Wally could shove his face into the cake. With ninja speed the first boy wonder snatched a nearby cupcake and smashed it into his best friend's face.

For the next three minutes, half of the cupcakes on the table were used in an all-out food fight to those that got involved.

Finally, after food and drinks and plenty of cake (and for most of the YJ boys, cleaning up) came the long-awaited moment of opening presents. Nightwing resembled his old thirteen-year-old-self to the people present that knew him at the time. He jumped about, doing cartwheels and flips as he cackled with excitement, hopping onto KF's back in a piggyback ride around the party. Nobody understood why exactly he was so excited. The guy already knew everything he was earning. Maybe it's because he was finally getting his hands on his gifts?

Regardless or the circumstances, Nightwing opened gift after gift with fervor, ripping the wrapping paper off like a child on Christmas morning. As he'd guessed, He did in fact earn various gifts that ranged from clothes to gadgets to weapons and everything in between from his YJ family and JL family alike.

What threw him for a bit of a loop was the joint gift from Superman and Superboy.

"No. Way." He grinned, holding up not one, but two of Superman's capes. One was brand new, the latest upgrade the man of steel used in combat, giving by the big blue boyscout himself. The other was a vintage classic, one of the first capes Superman ever wore when he decided to become a super-hero. He immediately tied the new one on around his neck, putting the old one safely back in it's box before taking a running leap at Superboy and glomping him. "Did you ever know that you're my hero?"

"You're, uh, welcome?"

"Dude, get a grip. You're fan-boying everywhere."

"Dude, _Superman's first cape!_ You can't judge me, you peed yourself when Flash gave you his first speed boots."

"Dude! You promised that would stay between us!"

The present opening continued, and the more the table of presents cleared, the more Batgirl became apprehensive. By the time the table was cleared, Nightwing was engulfed with his gifts. He looked more than ridiculous wearing a carnival mask, a sombrero, and superman's cape with a goofy grin plastered on his handsome face. M'gann, to help out their leader, used her telekinesis to move all his gifts back on the table in a more orderly fashion. The hero would put them away after the night's festivities.

"That's it, right? Let's get the music back on!" Impulse practically vibrated, hopping in place. "This party's so crash, and seeing Nightwing all out of his shady-element is so...so aster!"

"I think the words you're looking for is 'crashing the aster'." The blue bird suggested, messing with the young speedster's hair as he got up, then hooking his arm around Robin's neck in a headlock, messing up his hair as well. "Do us a favor and get the music going again, Robbie?"

"Actually," Batgirl's voice piped up, turning everyone's attention to her. "There's one more present left."

Nightwing frowned at the redhead in confusion, "There is?"

She nodded, "Yeah. Mine."

"Really?"

"What did I said just say, Wing-nut?"

"...Huh." He tutted, glancing between her and the present table, pouting in thought. "So you didn't get me the-?"

"No."

"How about the-?"

"No."

"The-?"

"No-o." She sang. Now the girl was smirking and her aura boasting victory. "I did it. I _actually_ did it. You don't know what I got you!"

"Y-yes I do!" The ebony-haired teen protested. The green-blue-eyed practically skipped up to him, grabbing him by the hand and dragging him outside. He began reciting a list of potential presents, each of which she blissfully replied with a proud no. Taking him out and around the back of the cave (the others, of course, curious and slowly following them out in groups), they stopped where there was a Peterbilt truck with a large cargo hold attached to it. "You got me a truck?" He said, deadpanned. "Gee, Bat-babe, thaaaanks."

"Not the truck, what's _inside_ the truck." She sighed in exasperation. "And don't call me that."

"Wally came up with it. I kinda like it."

"_Any_ways," She said, stopping and standing between him and the back of the truck. "About your gift. First off, it's technically already yours. But you've kind of neglected it for a while since you've been so busy, so I thought it'd be a good pick-me-up for you."

Dick's galaxy-blue eyes showed that he was 100% clueless through the mask. His head turned ever-so-slightly to the side, his messy bangs falling over his face. Barbara, through her own mask, hid her nervous well with her growing confidence. Her green-blue eyes shone with anticipation, so Dick put his faith in his best friend.

"Anything else you want to tell me about this 'gift that's already mine'?" He quoted with a chuckle. She seemed to ponder over it for a moment.

"I don't think...oh yeah! It's a week-long loan only, has to go back next Sunday." She grinned. "And before I show you, admit you're stumped."

"...Fine. I'm stumped."

Squeezing his hands, the girl let go, sucking a deep breath through her teeth to prepare herself. "Close your eyes," She whispered. "And close your eyes. No peeking." Dick did as she asked, and she waved a hand in front of his face to make sure he was keeping his word. Then, she went to the truck and used the remote to open up the back. Stepping inside, she walked into the darkness of the cargo hold. The Young Justice and Justice League members that decided to follow them outside watched on curiously, listening closely to her footsteps that clacked loudly on the metal. Then, she started to says words in a language that nobody recognized, and soon the cargo hold of the truck creaked and shook with heavy footfalls that headed towards the exit of the truck.

Dick, however, recognized the words clearly, and audibly gasped. He snapped his eyes open and watched as Barbara slowly backed out of the truck, cooing words of encouragement in Romani to the enormous African elephant that followed her out.

"Neptune's beard..." La'gann stared wide-eyed.

"No way! You got him an elephant?!" Beast Boy exclaimed, thrilled to see an animal that was familiar to him.

Barbara ignored the exclamations of excitement and questions, more focused on her best friend's reaction. Truth be told, she wasn't entirely sure if she should've followed through with this gift idea of hers or not. She knew how close to Dick's heart the circus was, the elephant, Zitzka, especially, since he named and unofficially owned the animal before his family's deaths. When she flew out to visit the circus and speak to C.C. Haly before they took leave for an international tour, the man explained a bit of Dick's history with the friendly elephant. The two were inseparable: he helped teach Zitzka her first basic commands as well as teach a few tricks of his own behind the trainer's back. Because of this close proximity, Zitzka played with Dick and even let him perform a few of his acrobatic moves on her in an unlikely joint performance.

In short, Zitzka the elephant was a big part of Dick's life in the circus, and it'd been far too long since he'd last seen her. So before Barbara could even begin to propose the ludicrous idea of maybe borrowing the elephant for the weekend and taking her to Gotham for Dick's upcoming birthday, C.C. Haly himself gave her permission to take the elephant for a trip to see her old friend. For a _week_. So long as, of course, all the proper accommodations of caring for her could be made and approved.

_"Great,"_ She'd thought with despair, _"There's only one person I know with the money and means to house an elephant. Brace yourself for a big 'hell no', Barbara."_

The redhead nearly fainted in surprise when she received an effortless "Of course" from Bruce Wayne.

She stepped out of the way, letting Zitzka approach Dick slowly, her large, thick trunk reaching out to inspect the young man and sniff him curiously. It was strange, but Barbara could swear there was a sort of recollection deep in the elephant's eyes, and with an unexpected, quick motion, she wrapped her trunk around Dick's torso and dragged him close to her. Alarmed, the girl was about to jump out to help him, but her best friend's laughter stopped her.

"Zitzka!" He smiled- really smiled- widely, hugging the elephant's head as far around as his arms could reach. He began babbling to her in his native tongue (Haly mentioned that's what she was trained in; there were quite a number of Romani gypsies in Haly's Circus crew back in the day) laughing when the animal seemed to understand and trumpet in response. He petted her fervently, then backed up and animatedly began making gestures with his hands. It looked like he was giving her commands.

She took a step back when Zitzka pushed herself to stand on her hind legs, trumpeting loudly. She was right. She couldn't help but smile at how overjoyed Dick was. He turned around to their teammates, waving, "What, you can't tell me you guys are scared of a cute little elephant?"

"Little? It's huge!" M'gann said.

"Her name is Zitzka, and she's the biggest sweetheart you'll ever meet." The hero assured them casually as Zitzka wrapped her trunk around him again and lifted him off the ground. "She's my elephant. Want to meet her? Promise she doesn't bite!"

The teen flocked to the unlikely duo, approaching slowly so as to not startle the elephant. Content with her success, Barbara began to make her way back to the tent. "Batgirl!" She heard her name being called, it was Nightwing. "Bats, hold up!" He chased after her. The girl turned around just as he caught up with her and bent down to hug her legs, lifting her off the ground and spinning her around. She let out a surprised yelp, but otherwise chuckled and grinned. When he set her down, she was enveloped in the biggest, warmest bear hug she'd gotten from him in years. A big part of her wished he didn't have to let go.

"Thank you," He whispered in her ear, completely heartfelt. "Thank you so much."

"What's the matter, boy blunder, you're not getting soft on me, are you?" She joked, hugging him back. He held onto her a moment longer, and when he pulled back a little he came back to kiss her full force. She squeaked in shock, staring wide-eyed, and was then showered with more kisses all over her face. "D-Dick!"

"Thank you-thank you-thank you-thank you-best-surprise-gift-ever-I-love-you-Babsey-you-rock-!" He said between every peck, making the girl's face grown redder and redder. "Thank you-thank you-thank you!"

"OK, OK, I get it!" She laughed, uncharacteristically bashful and biting down on her lip to not smile like an idiot. He kissed her lips one last time, then took both of her hands in his. He wore a mischievous smirk.

"Ever ride an elephant before?"

"Uh...no..."

"Come with me."

"I think I hear Dinah calling me back insi-Dick!" She yelped. She found she had no choice in the matter as he dragged her back. Yet, despite her unwillingness and fears, she found all that slowly melted away when she sat atop of the large mammal with her back flush against his chest. His arms were wrapped securely around her, holding onto Zitzka's decorative lead as they navigated about the grounds.

Tonight, Dick hated surprises, because he'd failed to guess one.

Tonight, Barbara found that maybe there was still hope in her love for surprises after all.

* * *

A/n: I know that the circus is a painful memory for Dick, but it's also one of his most cherished. It's like the silver lining of his life. I don't think a lot of stories I've read explore the side of him that _celebrates_ the memory and his love for the circus. Does it hurt him? Yes. Yet bear in mind that also makes him happy, and he doesn't completely avoid it or neglect it. On the contrary, it's been pointed out in canon time and time again that Dick makes a point to regularly visit his circus family and watch their performances.

I also had to include some of Superman-fanboy-Dick in there, because to me that the only thing funnier than the Flash family running joke (ha, pun intended) that they're always late. Gets me every time. Batman's face is just like: Dick, no. -_-*

Only one more prompt from Dibs week to go! Should I keep updating after it?

Review please and thanks!


	7. Resolution

A/n: Not much to say about this one. Dibs week is finally at an end (insert sadface here) and I, as always, am late with my final submission. At least I'm finishing strong, right? Oh wait, that's right, you haven't read this chapter yet. Haaaa...

I decided to end this with a bang...of fluff. I feel like I wrote more action/drama/events going on than the actual cutesey stuff. It's my flaw as a writer: for the life of me, I cannot write a short prompt for a creative story (aka...fanfiction too). They always turn out lengthy because I like to set up a good setting. That, and I also have this horrible pet peeve to "flesh out" a character as I write them so that they stay in character. I cannot begin to tell you how much I hate it when characters are ruined. Unless it's specifically labelled crack!fiction, I will not be forgiving. Again, a pet peeve thing.

...Oops, I'm ranting xp Without further ado, your fluff!

This chapter takes place somewhere during the time-skip. Robin II aka Jason Todd featured.

* * *

Seven - Resolution

_**"My job is to make images and leave the decision-making and conclusion-drawing to other people."- Laurie Anderson**_

* * *

"Ouch...ouch...oww, oww, ouch!"

"Ugh, quit whining and just hold still!"

"But it hurts!"

"It wouldn't hurt so much if you'd hold still!" The redhead girl reprimanded. "Or for that matter, if you hadn't gotten in a fight in the first place."

Barbara Gordon sat in the nurses office of Gotham Academy with fellow sophomore Dick Grayson. Currently, the nurse was at the main office, reporting to the principal the injuries sustained by Bruce Wayne's young ward as well as the other teens involved in the fight. Dick was complaining that the gauze his wrist was wrapped in hurt, so Barbara, who'd followed him there, took it upon herself to adjust it for him.

Dick was almost sulking in his seat. He was resting his head in his hand- or rather, was resting his eye in the ice pack he was holding, but ended up just leaning on his hand that was propped up on the table next to him. His lip was busted, albeit clean now, and swollen. He had a few visible bruises; his usually crisp and clean uniform was dirty and wrinkled from the brawl, complete with a tear in his jacket sleeve and all. His hair wasn't a bit of a mess, a few strands falling in his face. His galaxy blue eyes looked to everywhere but Barbara.

The green-blue eyed girl couldn't understand it. What on earth could get her best friend involved in a school fight, with some of the most thick-headed and immature students enrolled? Sure, she admitted, Dick was a troll. One way or another, he managed to pester the lives of everyone he met. It was "part of his charm" as he'd joked around once. If he wasn't outsmarting one person with brains or something akin to street-smarts, he was bugging another with his _ridiculous_ word puns and merciless butchering of the English language.

He especially loved doing this to teachers. He even received a Saturday detention for it once, as a result of getting three detentions in a week. She remembered what the yellow slips of paper said perfectly.

_1. For vandalizing school property: writing in a school dictionary-thesaurus and breaking down the "mistakes and flaws of the English language."_

_2. For calling the novel "A Fair-well to Arms" by E. Hemingway varied forms of 'stupid' and ridiculing the author._

_3. For wasting 20 minutes of class on a rant about the Oddessy and making inappropriate references to CSI during the in-class reading._

Bruce and Alfred nearly killed him for it. Jason commemorated his elder brother's hooliganisms, as it was in his own nature to instigate mischief. Barbara was present when he got all three detentions, and she had to admit that it was pretty damn funny.

But that was besides the point. Dick was a troll, yes, but he knew where to draw a line. And he most certainly never got involved in physical fights.

This time, not only was he involved in one, he _started_ it.

The boy grumbled another groan of complaint, but made it so that Barbara couldn't understand what he said. He flipped the ice pack over to its other side and pressed it against his swelling eye once more, but it didn't seem to be too effective. This brought the fair-skinned girl out of her thoughts. She pursed her lips in a pensive pout, leering at her best friend.

"Ok, spill. What happened?" She asked him. Startled, Dick glanced up at the girl. It was brief, and he quickly went back to patting the warming ice pack on his eye repeatedly and staring with keen interest at the tile floor.

"Nothing. Just stupid Josh and his buddies and another stupid fight." He mumbled.

Barbara rolled her eyes, fetching another ice pack from a nearby freezer. She took the one in his hands and put it aside. She herself gently pressed the ice onto his injured eye; he hissed lightly but nothing more. Her chest tightened at the sight of her friend hurt. "Ok, I get that. But "stupid Josh" and his friends haven't bothered you since you started school here. Remember how I chased them off for bullying you?"

Dick smirked slightly, a breathy cackle escaping his lips. "Yeah, I remember that. The day you and I became friends."

Barbara grinned to herself, some of the grin pride. "Precisely. This time _you_ started it. Why?"

The former circus acrobat didn't say anything. A mixture of sadness and anger swirled in his sparkling blue eyes like a tempest, and his eyes narrowed to glaring at the floor. He wouldn't look at her. "It's nothing, Babs."

"Of course it's something-."

"It's not, ok? Just let it go!" He frowned. The girl frowned as well, trying to get the boy to look at her.

She sighed, "Dick...c'mon. You're my best friend. I promise I won't tell anyone what it is." She told him in an effort to get him to break. He remained silent, reminding her of his adoptive father Bruce Wayne somewhere in the back of her mind. "If...if it was about your parents-."

"It wasn't about them." He snapped a little too harshly. He looked up at her again, somewhat apologetic, his eyes dodgy. "It...it wasn't about me at all, actually."

The girl 's elegant auburn eyebrows stitched together in confusion. "Then what was it?"

It took a moment for the boy to finally answer. She noticed how his natural mediterranean-tanned skin-lighter thanks to the lack of sunshine in Gotham- warmed to a rosy cheek that spread across his injured cheeks and nose. "It was about...you."

Well. That certainly came as a surprise to her.

"...Me?"

Dick nodded, again avoiding her eyes. "They were talking about girls they think are hot in school, comparing them to each other like. I-I-I know guys do that sort of thing, a-and so do girls, but they...the way they talked about it was so inhumane. They were judging you like some sort of piece of meat at a butcher's shop or like some sort of fancy car parts. It was degrading...and wrong." He began, stuttering from suddenly talking too fast. His eyes suddenly narrowed to the darkest glare she'd ever seen him wear.

"And then they started talking about what they'd do if one of them ever hooked up with you. They were joking around how you probably liked to play 'cops' before you slept with a guy. That's when I went up to them and told them to stop talking about you, but they didn't. They kept badmouthing you. They called you a slut for always hanging out with me, but letting other guys hit on you too. Like we're some sort of couple. I couldn't stand listening to them talk about you like that, so I let 'em have it."

Barbara stared at her best friend, shell-shocked.

"I kicked Josh Nicholson in the groin, and gave him a nice bloody nose too. His friends jumped me after that, but it was worth it."

The girl couldn't believe what she'd just heard. She felt numb. Sure, Barbara knew that some kids made fun of her and talked crap behind her back, but that was one of the tools of trade that came with surviving high school. Someone somewhere was always talking shit about you. Honestly, she expected it, and one could say she was even accustomed to it. Her father was the Police Commissioner of the city, her little brother was locked away and considered clinically unstable, and most recently her mother walked out on her family. Add on the fact that she was closest friends with the city's white-knight billionaire eldest ward-who came from his own problematic background-and you could see why there was so much to talk about her.

Yet this...this circumstance was new, and Dick's reaction was new. She was touched, to say the least, and felt a sudden wave of security wash over her.

"You...you..."For once, she struggled to put her thoughts into a cohesive sentence. "All this happened because of me? You fought a guy twice your size for _me_?"

"Hey, easy on the 'twice your size', Babs...he's only, like, three-quarters bigger than me." He chuckled.

"Grayson," She said in a half-threatening warning tone.

"Kidding." He looked at her, at the uncertainty in her eyes, and gave her one of his charming, crooking grins that was completely earnest. "Barb, you're the _only_ person I would ever think about taking on a guy three-quarters-more-than-my-size for."

The girl brushed loose strands of her fiery red hair and tucked it behind her ear. She sat closer to Dick, gentle as she removed the ice pack from his eye and place a soft kiss there. She gave him a heartfelt smile through her own blush. "Just promise you won't ever do it again."

Now it was his turn to look confused. "Are you kidding me-?"

"Dick, I don't care what someone like Josh Nicholson or his air-headed posse thinks about me. I don't care what a lot of people think about me, and you want to know why? Because most of those people don't even know me, so why should I let their cruel words bother me?"

"But-!"

"What _does_ bother me is that they hurt you this badly." She smirked at him. "I'm grateful to know I have someone to stand up for me should I ever need it, and..." She leaned forward again, pressing a long, tender kiss on his swollen lips. The boy stiffened up for only a moment, returning briefly before she pulled away. "Thank you, Dick."

"A_hem_."

The pair turned to look in the doorway, where the nurse had just walked back in with none other than Bruce Wayne himself. In the billionaire's shadow was young Jason, Dick's little brother by adoption. Where Bruce was keeping up an excellent poker face, Jason was snickering wickedly. The nurse looked like she was trying to play it cool as well.

"Ms. Gordon, I believe your father is on the phone back at the main office, he'd like to have a word with you." Barbara nodded, pecking Dick once again on the cheek quickly before following the nurse back out. As soon as they were left alone, Dick finally mustered the courage to look at his family members. His face resembled a cherry.

"Pfft, just best friends my ass," Jason cackled, making kissing faces at his older brother. "So when's the wedding, Grayson? I call best man, Wally can fight me for it."

"_No_ fighting," Bruce reprimanded, wanting to drop that subject entirely for the time being. He approached the young acrobat and knelt in front of him. He took the young teen's chin in his hand and inspected his face. "The both of you have caused more than enough trouble this week."

Jason rolled his eyes, slouching to sit next to Dick who was glaring at him. He wasn't going to let the boy off the hook so easily. He smirked maliciously, aiming a coy glance at Bruce, "Has pops given you the talk about the birds and the bees yet, _Dickie-bird_? I know all about it if you ever-."

"NO, Jason!" The two elders retorted at the same time, effectively silencing the boy. He crossed his eyes and glowered at both of them.

"Dick," Bruce said, bringing both boys' attention back to him. The older winced under his reprimanding gaze. "Do you have anything to add to the report the office gave me?"

"...What _did_ they tell you?"

"That you were involved in a fist-fight: took on four frequent troublemakers in your class over a girl that I now know for certain was Barbara Gordon. The principal told me you started it."

"Nope. Sounds about right."

Bruce nodded, lost in thought, then smirked. "At least you've earned some brownie points with the commissioner for when you ask her out."

* * *

That's a wrap for DickxBabs week 2012! Thanks everyone for reading, double thanks to those who favorited/alerted/all that cool stuff'ed, and infinite thanks to those who did all that and REVIEWED!

Now the big question: since those of you that reviewed last chapter said that you'd like for me to continue (I'm very flattered and happy to, by the way!), what would you like to see me write?

Sincerely, the red-velvet-souled panda :D


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